Burning Frost, Living Spirit
by Firestream of Ice
Summary: Part 1: Frostpaw sees bloodthirsty Nightpaw kill an older apprentice, but he forces her to secrecy. He doesn't know that she sees him kill more for ambition, or that she is destined to destroy him. Part 2: Froststar's kit, Firekit, has heard of Nightstar. But what the clan doesn't know is that evil lives on in Nightstar's kin. And she intends to figure it out as a living spirit.
1. Part 1 - Chapter 1

**PART 1: BURNING FROST - Frostpaw**

A beautiful, small snow-white she-cat emerged from the undergrowth, her jaws parted slightly as she tasted the crisp newleaf air. Her crystal blue eyes shone with a bright fire as the pale blue-gray clouds overhead scuttled out of the way, making space for the sun to appear on this fine morning, one ray at a time. An emerald leaf spiraled down toward her, and she playfully batted it out of the way.

Frostpaw's ear twitched as she picked up a faint scuffling sound, and by scent, she pinpointed a squirrel at the base of an ash tree, its fluffy tail curled up. Stifling a purr, so that she wouldn't alert her prey, she adjusted her position, her fur sleek as she made sure that she stayed downwind as she stalked closer.

Her pawsteps were light and stealthy as she stepped toward the squirrel, her blue eyes concentrated. Her plumy white tail stayed low as she bunched her muscles before pouncing. The warm tang of her prey's blood flooded her senses, making her feel warm all the way down to her belly. Triumphantly, she sat up, the limp body of the squirrel dropping to the ground. Padding closer to the ash tree, Frostpaw dug a shallow hole and dropped her catch inside, before covering it up with dirt from the forest floor.

Before she could completely bury her prey, she heard a long, muffled, feminine scream. Whoever had made the sound was definitely in pain, but since she was probably the closest cat to the Twolegplace at the time, not to mention maybe the _only_ cat, Frostpaw was probably the only one who could help in any way. _I don't know... it's coming from the Twolegplace... but I can't let a cat die!_

Making up her mind, Frostpaw bounded away from her half-buried prey and, drawing in a deep breath, raced toward the Twolegplace. She paused for a heartbeat as she heard a familiar voice growl, "Shut up, crowfood!"

Startled, and suddenly a little frightened, Frostpaw turned toward the cat's voice, a tom's, and decided that the sound was coming from a clearing that was surrounded by tall, dark green bushes. Hearing another whimper, she crouched down and peered through the bushes at the horrifying scene that met her wide, shocked, scared eyes.

Nightpaw, the strongest fighter of the clan, was the most battle-hungry and ambitious tom there could ever be, in Frostpaw's opinion. He was an arrogant tom, and Frostpaw didn't know what Brackenstar, the clan leader, saw in him to make his mentor Yellowgaze, the clan deputy. She doubted Yellowgaze even had the faintest idea that his apprentice was becoming a ruthless monster.

The jet-black tom had another cat pinned down, growling threats at whoever it was. The cat couldn't be more than just an apprentice; and Frostpaw could make out that it was a she-cat, by the pleading and struggling.

Nightpaw lifted his one white forepaw, his claws unsheathed. If he had any idea that Frostpaw was watching, horrified, he gave no sign of it. Just as his claws sliced into her neck, the she-cat turned her head, and, with a shock, she realized that it was Mistpaw, who was one of the older apprentices in the clan. Her green eyes begging, her jaws formed the word _please_ as blood poured out of her neck, and her eyes glazed over.

 _Nightpaw killed an apprentice of his own clan!_ Frostpaw nearly wailed out loud as Nightpaw merely licked his chest, shrugging as he rose to his paws. His green eyes shone with a thirst for blood that she had often seen before.

For a horrible moment, his green eyes bored into her blue ones, and he padded toward the bush where she crouched. Gasping out loud, Frostpaw turned tail and fled from the scene of Mistpaw's lifeless body and Nightpaw standing proudly near her, his eyes malicious, his smirk sadistic. But she couldn't move, as something strong held her still by her tail.

Frostpaw's jaws opened in a silent wail as Nightpaw's teeth fastened around her neck as he hauled her into the very same clearing, shoving her muzzle into the dirt. Nightpaw's claws pierced her cheek, bringing a stinging pain.

"Nightpaw!" she gasped; if she screamed out loud, she knew she wouldn't live long enough to see help come her way. "Why are you doing-"

Her mew was cut off as Nightpaw's claws scored a gash on her flank; her gasp was replaced by a cry of pain. "I killed Mistpaw because she knew too much about me." He paused, letting his teeth sink deeper into the back of her throat. Frostpaw's blue eyes bulged slightly as a heavy pressure landed on her neck, until the sides of her vision went dark.

"I kill cats who stand in my way!" he roared. "She knows too much about me!" Frostpaw flinched and shut her eyes, preparing to greet StarClan. _Nightpaw is already a ruthless monster!_

Suddenly, the pressure was relieved from her neck. Frostpaw dared to open a crystal blue eye. Had some other ThunderClan cat come to her rescue? Was it a Twolegplace cat? Twisting her head around, she realized that it was none of the above.

Nightpaw had lifted her paw out of his own will, and was staring down at her. The twisted expression on his face made her feel jittery and nervous on the inside. "No."

Frostpaw raised her head.

"I won't kill you," the muscular black apprentice growled. He purred, a rumbling sound that sounded half like a hiss. "I'll let you live. I'll let you live the rest of your pitiful life in fear. If you want me to let you go, you must never tell a soul about this. And you cannot drop hints or anything."

Frostpaw shivered. "But-" _I can't protect a murderer!_

Nightpaw forced her head to the ground, his claws resting on her neck. "Understood?" Frostpaw could barely nod. Nightpaw shot her a smirk. "I'll leave you a few scars so that you remember."

"No!" Frostpaw struggled, but Nightpaw's claws were already tearing tufts of white fur from her flank. None of the scratches he gave her would leave a scar, Frostpaw realized, by the feel of it.

"Now," Nightpaw growled, his green eyes cold. "Go and run back to that pitiful excuse we have to call our clan." Frostpaw didn't wait a moment, as he released her. She simply turned tail and raced away, wanting to get away from Nightpaw. But a few heartbeats later, she heard a hiss, and she could tell it came from Nightpaw.

Curiosity drove her back toward the clearing, where she saw Nightpaw, his green eyes gleaming, claw a gash in the perfect shape of a moon, a little larger than claw-moon, on his chest. His claws sank deeper into his chest, and the drying blood on his jet-black fur left the image of a blood-red moon in a black night.

He seemed to realize he was being watched, and Frostpaw cowered instinctively as he stalked over to her, thrusting the bushes out of his way. In a flash, he was on her, pinning her down. Frostpaw's claws raked across one of his ears, but a hiss silenced her. "You must not tell a word!" he hissed angrily.

"I-I won't," Frostpaw promised weakly. "But why did you?"

"You know enough, fox-dung," he growled, his unsheathed claws gleaming. He shoved her away. "Go. Live your pathetic life. In fear of me, forever." Frostpaw scrambled to her paws and raced away before he could say anything else. Her head spun as she fled, away from Nightpaw, away from the dead form of Mistpaw, away from all this horror. But she knew she could never push it all away.

Frostpaw scrambled to a halt by the lake, then gave the water an experimental dab. It sent shivers down her spine. She sunk her paws into the icy water, shuddering at the sudden cold. But she knew she had to wash off the blood from her fur.

To her surprise, when she was done, barely a scratch-mark was left. It was simply blood, she realized, Nightpaw hadn't really hurt her much.

Suddenly, the bushes just across the WindClan border rustled, and her close WindClan friend, Heatherpaw, padded out. "I saw you, you know," Heatherpaw murmured, her blue eyes shining sympathetically. Her light brown fur was sleek in the morning light. "What happened?"

"A rogue," Frostpaw muttered, licking her fur. To her relief, Heatherpaw seemed to accept it.

 _Yes, a rogue. Or a cat with actions and behavior like one. Like Nightpaw, but he's just worse._


	2. Part 1 - Chapter 2

Frostpaw winced as she saw a white-furred she-cat, who looked hauntingly like herself, writhing in pain on the forest floor as blood streamed from deep wounds all over her. Nightpaw stood over the cat, his green eyes gleaming maliciously as he stared down.

"Why... are you... doing this?" the she-cat gasped, in obvious pain.

Nightpaw smirked. "Sorry," he spat. "But it's all for the best." With that, his claws pierced her throat, and Frostpaw shivered uncontrollably as the cat's blue eyes glazed over. Nightpaw leaned closer. " _My_ best."

Frostpaw jerked awake, sweating all over her. Her crystal blue eyes shone with fear; Nightpaw could easily kill her, after all, he was the strongest apprentice, and the oldest apprentice. That afternoon, she had chosen to rest, tired and afraid of what she had seen, but her sleep had been haunted by nightmares, which made it no better than the waking world.

Had she just seen herself die? The flash of fear in her eyes was replaced with a look of determination. _No. I won't let that happen._

Low, mournful yowls rung outside the apprentices' den, coming from the clearing in the camp. Loudest of all was the wail of Blueshadow, who had been Mistpaw's mother. Frostpaw realized that Mistpaw's body had been found in a pool of her blood, in that clearing, and, quickly, she padded outside. Sure enough, Blueshadow crouched over her dead daughter, her eyes gleaming with sadness.

Nightpaw, on the other hand, shot her a smirk, unseen by the rest of the clan, before he took on a fake look of sorrow.

"She could have been a warrior in a few days," Brightstorm, her mentor, was mewing, her nose buried in her dead apprentice's fur.

Brackenstar, a light brown tabby tom, leaped onto the Highledge, his amber eyes hard. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!"

There was no need to do that. All of the ThunderClan cats were already in the clearing, gazing sadly at the apprentice's limp body.

"As you all know, Mistpaw is dead. She was a promising young cat, and it is a pity she died so young," Brackenstar mewed. "But, as you can see, Mistpaw didn't simply die. She was murdered. And since there is no other scent on her but ThunderClan scent, she was killed by a ThunderClan cat." His words were greeted by yowls of outrage, which he silenced with a flick of his tail.

He lifted his head in a yowl. "I have reason to believe that Nightpaw killed her!"

Frostpaw couldn't help shooting a glance at the heartless black tom. Nightpaw stared straight ahead, meeting Brackenstar's gaze evenly. "Brackenstar, you found my fur in her claws," he mews calmly. "So you think I murdered her. In fact, you may be right, but not in the way you would think."

A few growls and murmurs spread through the crowd of listening cats.

"I was hunting alone, when Mistpaw attacked me," Nightpaw mewed. _Liar._ "Her goal was to kill me, as we had argued yesterday. So, I was just defending myself, when I fought back. Of course, I overpowered her, but when I left the clearing area, I saw that she didn't follow. But I hadn't killed her. So, when I went back, she was somehow dead."

 _Yeah, and hedgehogs fly._ That's what Frostpaw wanted to say, but she couldn't, for fear that Nightpaw would kill her, as well.

Brackenstar, having always seen a spark in the apprentice, nodded. "That seems about right. But if you didn't kill her, who did?"

"It may have been a rogue. We were near the Twolegplace, you see."

Brackenstar dipped his head. "Thank you, Nightpaw. And, I must perform a ceremony that should have been done a while ago. You took your assessment two days before, but as we have had so much on our minds, we were unable. Who doubts that he is ready to become a warrior?" Not a word greeted him. "Then, Yellowgaze, his he ready?"

The dark brown tabby nodded, his yellow eyes proud. "He will be a warrior the clan can be proud of."

"Nightpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

Nightpaw dipped his head. "I do." _Yeah, right._ "Then, by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. From this moment onward, you will be known as Nightclaw. StarClan honors your strength and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

 _Loyalty? Really?_ Frostpaw couldn't believe her ears as Nightclaw padded forward and licked Brackenstar's shoulder respectfully. Brackenstar had no idea about the _real_ Nightclaw, that was concealed behind his thick, black fur and deep green eyes, that was murderous and cruel.

Frostpaw didn't even realize that Brackenstar had called the meeting to a close until she felt fur brush at her side. It was Ashpaw, who was probably her closest friend, who, though not Mistpaw's littermate, had been around her age, and, now that Nightclaw was a warrior, was the oldest apprentice in the clan. There was him, then Sandpaw, his sister, who was also a close friend of Frostpaw's, and then Snowpaw was training under Poppylight to become a medicine cat; she was the youngest apprentice.

"Frostpaw?" A paw waved impatiently in front of her. "Frostpaw, are you there?"

Frostpaw's crystal blue eyes betrayed her shock as she whipped around to stare at Ashpaw, who seemed to be speaking to her. The two were very close, and Ashpaw would soon be a warrior. Frostpaw didn't know what she would do without Ashpaw.

"What?"

His blue eyes betrayed his concern. "You look worried. Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, why shouldn't it be?" Frostpaw snapped, trying to hide her worry. Ashpaw took a pace back, a little startled, but Frostpaw laid her white tail on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she mewed. The rest of what she said was simply a lie. "I'm just sad that Mistpaw died so young."

"You don't think Nightpaw killed Mistpaw, do you?" Frostpaw jumped in surprise, then tried to mask her emotion. As they were so close, Ashpaw could sometimes just tell what she was thinking.

"No, of course not!" Frostpaw mewed quickly. Lowering her voice, she added, "But either way, I don't trust him."

"Frostpaw!" A voice was yowling her name, and Frostpaw quickly realized that it was Cinderblaze, a light gray she-cat with a pure white streak across her back, who was also her mentor. Frostpaw found her a decent cat, a kind she-cat who made a perfect mentor.

Before Ashpaw could reply, Frostpaw leaned back. "I've got to go," she mewed, pointing to Cinderblaze with her tail before racing away. A black tom ran straight across her path, and Frostpaw realized, her eyes narrowed, that Nightclaw still hadn't washed the half-moon shape from his chest.

 _What's he playing at?_ "No, get Ashpaw, too," Cinderblaze mewed. "He and Dawnflower are training with us today." Dawnflower was Ashpaw's mentor, as well as Cinderblaze's sister.

Frostpaw brightened at this, then raced toward the apprentices' den, spotting Ashpaw sitting neatly outside. "Ashpaw!" she mewed, not panting too much. "Come on, you lazy furball! We're training!" Ashpaw touched his nose to hers, a mark of affection, then raced past her. Frostpaw soon caught up with him, and together, they ran toward where their mentors waited.

Before their mentors could say anything, however, a yowl of pure shock and amazement broke out behind them. Frostpaw whipped around. Yellowgaze was at the fresh-kill pile with his former apprentice, obviously having caught sight of the blood-red crescent-moon shape on his chest. "What in the name of StarClan is that?"

Nightclaw shrugged. "Mistpaw attacked me, remember?"

"No, but look at it!" Yellowgaze stared at the dried blood. "It's in the perfect shape of a crescent-moon!" By now, most of the clan had gathered near them, and Brackenstar himself had come to see what all the commotion was about.

Brackenstar pushed his way through the crowd of cats, coming to stare at the scar. _Is this what Nightclaw wanted? Attention?_ "You're right, Yellowgaze. StarClan must have been protecting him during the fight."

"You're no medicine cat, Brackenstar!" a cat spat; the crowd parted to reveal Lightstep.

Heartbeats later, Snowpaw bounded out of the medicine den. "Did someone say 'medicine cat'?"

"Yes," Brackenstar mewed. "Come and look at the scar that Nightclaw received from Mistpaw. "Doesn't it mean that StarClan was protecting him?" Snowpaw squinted at the crescent-moon for a heartbeat, then her green eyes widened, and she turned and fled back to the medicine den without saying anything.

"What was that all about?" Ashpaw asked, but Frostpaw realized that the medicine cat apprentice had sensed danger. _You're right to avoid trouble, Snowpaw._

Heartbeats afterward, Poppylight herself emerged with the apprentice, then stared at the crescent-moon. Snowpaw seemed to have told her everything. "I think it may be that Nightpaw received protection from StarClan."

Snowpaw gasped out loud, and several pairs of eyes swung around to face her. "No!" she mewed, her expression anxious. "I don't think so!"

"Then what do you think happened?" Poppylight mewed curiously.

Snowpaw shook her head. "I don't know, but that scratch... something tells me that there's something amiss here."

Immediately, a chorus of yowling and hissing broke out. "She's right!"

"No, how do you think he survived?"

"Mouse-brain!"

"The apprentice is right!"

"I'll claw your face off!"

"Stop it!" The cats had split into two almost equal groups. Brackenstar thrust himself in between. "No more mention of this shall come up," he growled. "If you want to speak, talk to me." With that, he turned and stalked away into his den, leaving the clan staring after him in surprise.

"Well, that's that," Cinderblaze mewed.

"What do you think about it?" Frostpaw asked.

Cinderblaze turned to her. "Didn't you just hear Brackenstar? Don't talk about it! But," she added, her voice softening. "I agree with Snowpaw."

"You're right, Cinderblaze." The voice was Dawnblaze's. "I think so, too."


	3. Part 1 - Chapter 3

Frostpaw padded into the ThunderClan camp, a squirrel clamped firmly in her jaws. It had been nearly a moon since she saw Nightclaw kill Mistpaw, and Frostpaw was to take her first assessment tomorrow. It was already dark, now, and her mentor, Cinderblaze, wanted her to rest.

But she couldn't rest. Not tonight. She and her WindClan friend Heatherpaw met at the border every claw-moon night, like this one. Sighing, she dropped her prey on the fresh-kill pile before padding into the apprentices' den, where Ashpaw was the only one awake. "Frostpaw? Is that you?" Frostpaw rolled her eyes, staring down at her pure-white pelt, that stood out like a blossom in the middle of a mud puddle.

"No, it's Nightclaw," Frostpaw stated crisply, padding over to her nest, and making Ashpaw purr in amusement.

Ashpaw touched his nose to hers, then broke away. "Frostpaw, I need to talk to you. You've been acting-"

Frostpaw cut him off. "No, not today," she said, scanning her gaze around to make sure that the other apprentices were asleep. "Tonight's the night of the claw-moon." Ashpaw knew that she went to meet Heatherpaw sometimes, and he kept her secret faithfully.

Ashpaw sighed, his blue eyes exasperated. "Oh, all right, then. Go on."

Frostpaw padded over to the den entrance, and peered out. The clearing was deserted, and a patrol was headed for the border with RiverClan, and the coast was clear near WindClan, from ThunderClan's side, at least. Slipping out of the den, she padded into the dirtplace tunnel, creeping out into the forest. The moon was high in the sky, and Frostpaw tensed. She was late; normally she would be nearly at the WindClan border.

Picking up speed, the white she-cat raced through the territory, leaping over fallen logs and swerving around the trees. "Heatherpaw?" she asked, skidding to a halt by the WindClan border.

A shadow fell over her in reply. "Frostpaw! You came!"

"How could I not?" Frostpaw mewed softly, her eyes bright. She paused. "Sorry I'm late."

Heatherpaw, a light brown tabby she-cat with hazy blue eyes, padded closer and placed her tail on Frostpaw's back. "Don't worry about it." The two she-cats had met at a gathering once before, and had soon become extremely close friends. Even more so since Frostpaw had saved Heatherpaw from drowning, despite the fact that she was no RiverClan cat. They had found much in common between them.

There was a pause. Frostpaw shivered. _What would Nightclaw say if he was here now?_

"What's the news in your clan lately?" Heatherpaw mewed, after a while.

Frostpaw shrugged, careful to avoid the topic of who killed Mistpaw. "Nightclaw's become a warrior... and-" she gulped "-Mistpaw was murdered." Frostpaw shuddered, turning ever so slightly as she heard a gasp of anger from behind her, but she saw no one.

Heatherpaw looked horrified. "By whom?"

"A rogue." It took an effort to lie to her friend, but the clan and herself would be in danger if she told.

Heatherpaw dipped her head. "She was a good cat, even if she wasn't in WindClan." She paused. "Bluepaw and Eaglepaw became apprentices this morning." She let out a purr of amusement. "They're so full of energy, the little furballs!"

"You talk about them as though they're kits," she teased.

Heatherpaw purred. "Well, they are _new_ apprentices," she stated, as matter-of-factly as she could manage. Frostpaw purred forcefully and pressed warmly against her. Somehow, she knew that there was someone watching them, hidden by the bushes, but she didn't have the heart to check who it was. If it was Nightclaw, well, he had to keep her secret, for she had to keep his.

Then, her voice hardened. "Heatherpaw, I think we should go. I have the strange feeling that someone's watching us, and I don't want to be found out."

Heatherpaw nodded, the WindClan she-cat looking curious. "All right. See you at the gathering... if you're coming, I mean." With a final nod to the light brown tabby, Frostpaw whirled around, her paws shaking at the thought of being discovered, and headed back to camp.

 _We're not breaking the warrior code,_ she told herself. _We're obviously not mates, and neither of us is crossing the border._ Then why did she feel so guilty?

oO0Oo

"Frostpaw! Frostpaw!" Paws poked her side, and the soft-furred white she-cat's crystal blue eyes flew open, startled, as she saw Ashpaw standing above her. Shaking out her fur, Frostpaw pushed herself into a sitting position, then shot her friend a glare.

"What in the name of StarClan is so important, Ashpaw?"

Ashpaw rolled his deep blue eyes. "It's my final assessment, and your first assessment. For StarClan's sake, it's nearly sunhigh!"

 _That_ did it. Frostpaw sprang to her paws, then pushed past Ashpaw and out of the apprentices' den, her fur fluffed up as she imagined Cinderblaze's scorching glare on her pelt. She soon spotted her mentor, but the gray she-cat didn't look angry; she was speaking urgently with Dawnflower (Ashpaw's mentor) and Blueclaw (Sandpaw's mentor).

Frostpaw realized that Sandpaw was already with them, and Ashpaw was beside her, his muscles pumping. "I can't wait!" he mewed, dashing toward the mentors as fast as his legs could carry him, although Frostpaw recognized a bounce in his running.

This would also be Sandpaw's final assessment, as she was the sister of Ashpaw.

As soon as she padded over, Cinderblaze turned toward her and nodded. Frostpaw's crystal blue eyes shone with excitement. This would be her first assessment! Sandpaw was making an effort to hide her excitement and look nonchalant, but Frostpaw saw a gleam of anticipation shining in her green eyes. Ashpaw's paws were working nervously on the ground, until Frostpaw's soft white tail ran gently over his back, calming him.

Dawnflower let out a purr, seeing the three apprentices' nervousness. "Come on, follow us, and don't be nervous."

 _Well, that's hard._ Frostpaw bit back that retort, directed at the last instruction, as she padded after Ashpaw's red-furred mentor. Cinderblaze didn't walk alongside her sister, but instead hung back, talking to Frostpaw. "We decided that we'll add some things to the assessment."

"That's great," Frostpaw mewed, but her voice was devoid of any emotion.

Cinderblaze's tail flicked her ear. "No, don't worry. It'll be fine, Frostpaw."

"I hope you're right."

"We're here!" Blueclaw announced, his blue-gray fur sleek and smooth as he gazed proudly at his apprentice, Sandpaw. Ashpaw sniffed the air, while Sandpaw narrowed her eyes curiously. "This time, we have decided to add a few things to the regular assessment."

Ashpaw let out a groan, while Frostpaw bounded up to him and flicked her tail over his jaws, silencing him. She pricked her ears, listening, while Dawnflower continued.

"Before we do any hunting or fighting, you three will be displaying your running skills, that is, your speed," the dark red she-cat mewed.

Frostpaw brightened at this. Even when Nightclaw was an apprentice, she had been the fastest apprentice. She always won in races. Ashpaw shot her a glare, which she returned with a smirk. Sandpaw's ginger fur was fluffed out, but she managed to purr at the interaction that went on between her brother and Frostpaw.

"Where are we running?" Frostpaw ventured.

Cinderblaze grinned. "You start here and end at the lake."

 _The lake?_ Frostpaw thought, startled. _That's far!_

"Now," Blueclaw stated. "I know that Frostpaw is the fastest apprentice, but this time, you all get to choose your own path to get there." _Yes!_

"Are you ready?" Cinderblaze mewed. Ashpaw and Sandpaw nodded, and her blue gaze turned on the white apprentice. Frostpaw's eyes were narrowed in concentration and determination as she laid out her path in her mind and dropped into a crouch. _I'll avoid Two-Boulder Pass... I'll take the other route. Past the Sky Oak..._

She was jolted from her thoughts as Ashpaw nudged her, then flicked his tail at Cinderblaze, who was waiting for her reply. "Sorry, what?" Frostpaw could feel her face burning with embarrassment.

Her gray mentor sighed. "Are you ready?"

At Frostpaw's nod, she threw her head back and yowled, as Blueclaw and Dawnflower joined in the signal to begin.


	4. Part 1 - Chapter 4

Frostpaw jumped to her paws, groaning inwardly as she realized that she had begun after the older apprentices. Refusing to give up hope, she pelted after them, soon catching up. She saw Ashpaw heading for Two-Boulder Pass, while Sandpaw had completely disappeared from view. She had probably taken a third route.

Frostpaw picked up her speed and raced after Ashpaw. But instead of heading toward the pass, she turned away from it, running through the forest. Her heart soared along with her body as she scampered over a small hill and down the other side.

Sandpaw was still nowhere to be seen.

Bunching up her muscles, Frostpaw leaped forward in long strides, her tail streaming out behind her. _I have to win this race. I'm fast enough._ Her eyes gleaming with determination as she let the breeze ruffle her fur. Then, she skidded to a halt.

"Mouse-dung!" The wind was blowing toward her, slowing her down. But she would have to go toward the lake, so all three of them would face the challenge of running against the wind. So she pushed on.

Frostpaw almost yowled out in surprise as a lithe ginger figure soared down from somewhere higher above and raced ahead. _Sandpaw! She must have been in the trees all this time, then taken me by surprise!_

Gritting her teeth, Frostpaw raced after her, then stumbled to a stop, hearing a cry.

No, she couldn't win if she turned back. But if a cat was in trouble, she had to help them! Torn, Frostpaw shut her eyes, thinking. Sighing, she turned away and headed back toward Two-Boulder Pass. As she neared, her heart nearly stopped as she heard a frightened scream and a loud crash. There was only one person she knew capable of making that sound. _Ashpaw!_

Her heart thumping wildly, she reached the area, then jumped back, doubling back into the nearest tree. She yowled, shocked, as she saw a series of large boulders crumbling, bearing down on a certain gray tom.

Frostpaw let out another scream as rocks poured down onto the base of the tree where she sat, and her paws grabbed at nothing as the tree, an ancient birch, plummeted downward. Frostpaw shrieked as she hit the ground hard, and in a moment, she was buried under the rocks. She found that there was an excruciating pain in her foreleg, and as she dragged her head upward, she jumped up as forcefully as she could, breaking free.

"Ashpaw?" she called, her voice laced with worry. As she padded closer, there was a stab in her foreleg, and she let out a whimper. Then, the memories came flooding back. How could she make it first to the lake, now?

No reply to her call.

Frostpaw's heart twisted as she saw the pale gray form of Ashpaw lying still under a pile of rocks. His eyes were closed, and Frostpaw raced over, prodding him, but getting no sign back. His chest faintly rose and fell, so she knew he was alive.

Where were Cinderblaze, Dawnflower, and Blueclaw? They could have helped. But she knew that they were probably waiting by the lake.

Frostpaw leaned in and dragged Ashpaw out, her muscles aching with the extra weight. But she didn't dare to let go of the young tom, for he would be even more severely wounded on the rocks. She dragged him away from Two-Boulder Pass, and left him at the base of the Sky Oak, for she was sure she couldn't carry him any further.

Frostpaw's eyes narrowed in determination, as she raced toward the lake, in the quickest direction she knew. Yes, it would be a difficult ground, but she had to get there fast, for herself and for Ashpaw.

Ignoring the stabbing pain in her leg, Frostpaw swallowed a whimper of pain as she half-ran, half-limped, toward the lake. Her eyes were concentrated on the ground. Every time her leg gave way, she pressed on, thinking, _This is not only for me. It's for Ashpaw._

Soon enough, the lake came into view. And, so did Sandpaw. The ginger she-cat was probably the slowest of the three apprentices, so it made sense that she wasn't at the lake yet. And, the way she had been heading earlier, it was the longest way, though the way with the easiest ground. Putting on an extra burst of speed, Frostpaw gritted her teeth, tearing past the startled Sandpaw.

But as she looked behind her a heartbeat later, Sandpaw had vanished.

 _Probably up to her tricks again._ Sighing, Frostpaw turned forward and bounded as fast as she could manage toward the slowly growing form of the clear, placid, blue lake. Her eyes danced, ignoring the pain in her foreleg. _I'm getting there first._

Heartbeats later, Sandpaw exploded from the undergrowth, but Frostpaw pulled ahead of her, skidding to a halt at the edge of the lake, where she could see Cinderblaze, Dawnflower, and Blueclaw waiting.

But as she stopped, her leg gave way, and Frostpaw only had enough time to gasp out, "Ashpaw... Sky Oak!" before she crumpled to the ground, giving way to blackness.

oO0Oo

"Frostpaw, wake up." Frostpaw grumbled a little, muttering under her breath as her eyes fluttered open, and she pushed herself to her paws. She tested her foreleg, which somehow seemed healed. A silver-furred she-cat's yellow eyes gleamed gently as she stepped toward her, stars glittering in her fur.

"Wha- you're a StarClan cat!" Frostpaw gasped, guessing from the she-cat's gentle, yet noble, demeanor, and her soft luster.

She dipped her head. "I am. My name is Moonflower, and I was once a ThunderClan cat, so long ago. Have you heard of the leader Bluestar?"

Frostpaw nodded. "I thought she was a legend, though!"

Moonflower shook her head. "She was a great leader, no legend, young one." She paused for a heartbeat, and Frostpaw caught a flicker of pride in her yellow eyes. "She was my daughter." Frostpaw's eyes widened, and she gazed at the StarClan cat with newfound respect.

Recovering from her shock quickly, Frostpaw met Moonflower's golden gaze. "Why have you come to me?"

Moonflower didn't reply immediately. She wound around Frostpaw gently, her tail on Frostpaw's back, reminding the young apprentice of how her mother, Lightsong, used to calm her when she was a kit. Frostpaw froze for a heartbeat. "Am I _dead?"_

The silver StarClan cat let out a purr. "No, little one." She sighed. "There is a great danger coming, and only you know how to overcome it."

Frostpaw narrowed her eyes. "This is about Nightclaw, isn't it?"

"You have good instincts, young one. Learn to trust them." That was her only reply. Frostpaw supposed it meant that her guess was right.

"Tell me more!" she demanded.

Moonflower's solemn face crinkled into a smile and a purr, as she looked Frostpaw directly in the eye. "Burning frost is strong and wild, yet it must be enough to stop the dark night." Frostpaw sighed. She'd always learned that StarClan spoke in riddles.

"What does it mean?"

Moonflower shook her head. "I'm sorry, that's for you to figure out." Before Frostpaw could say anything else, Moonflower dissolved into nothingness, leaving Frostpaw just the memory of her words and her soft, sweet scent.

"Frostpaw! Frostpaw!" Frostpaw jerked awake, startled to find herself in the soft nest of the medicine den. Snowpaw, a light brown she-cat with pure white petal-like shapes on her fur, blinked her green eyes anxiously at her. "You were muttering in your sleep!"

"I was?" Frostpaw's eyes blazed, and she painfully pushed herself up. "What did I say?"

"Well... I couldn't tell exactly..."

Frostpaw relaxed. She didn't want the entire clan to know that she had been having prophetic dreams from StarClan. What would Brackenstar say if he knew? That is, if he didn't die laughing. "Good." She flexed her foreleg, and pain shot through it, making her grimace.

"How's that leg?" Snowpaw asked.

"It's fine, I guess. Has Poppylight done anything to it to heal it?"

Snowpaw shook her head. "She wanted to wait until you woke up. In case-" the medicine cat apprentice gulped "-you were dreaming." This was so close to the truth that Frostpaw momentarily found no reply. She decided to change the subject.

"How's Ashpaw?"

"He's all right, I think," Snowpaw mewed. "His paw was bleeding badly, and infected. He's sleeping." She flicked her white tail-tip toward the nest beside Frostpaw, and the white she-cat craned her neck to see a sleeping gray tom.

"Snowpaw!" a voice yowled, from somewhere deeper inside the den. Seconds later, Poppylight emerged, then looked relieved as she saw Frostpaw. "You're awake."

"How long have I been out?" Frostpaw wondered.

"Not long, actually," Poppylight mewed. "Just the entire afternoon after the race."

 _"Just?"_ Frostpaw snapped.

"Well, you need your rest, you know," Poppylight stated. "Cinderblaze and Dawnflower concluded that Ashpaw was using trees, and he fell out of the Sky Oak, onto you. That's why he was found by the Sky Oak."

"No, no, you've got it all wrong!" Frostpaw gasped. Snowpaw stared at her curiously. "Ashpaw was heading for Two-Boulder Pass, and I went another way. Later, I heard Ashpaw scream, so I went back to Two-Boulder Pass, so that I might track him from there. There was a rock fall, and that's how I injured my leg." Frostpaw lifted up her foreleg. "Ashpaw was injured too, and I dragged him out, and then I couldn't carry him any farther than the Sky Oak."

There was a brief silence.

Then, Poppylight nodded. "I think that makes sense. Now, about that leg... it's dislocated..." She clamped her jaws around the foreleg firmly.

"It's going to hurt," Snowpaw warned, earning a playful glare from her mentor.

Frostpaw heard and felt a sharp click, then let out a furious yowl of pain as agony shot through her leg. Poppylight sighed. "That happens with everyone. You were brave, though. Ashpaw might have died without you. Now, eat these." She pushed two small black seeds in front of Frostpaw. _Poppy!_

Slowly, she bent forward, lapped them up, and fell into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.


	5. Part 1 - Chapter 5

"Finally!" Frostpaw threw her head back and yowled to the sky, making Poppylight wince. The medicine cat had just announced that she could leave the medicine den and get back on regular duties. Yes, it was only the day after the accident, but it felt too long. Ashpaw was allowed to leave a little earlier, but he chose to stay.

Ashpaw purred. "You're excited."

"You bet I am!" Frostpaw teased, flicking her tail under his nose and making him sneeze.

"So much for a new addition to the assessment," Ashpaw remarked, as they padded, tails entwined, into the apprentices' den.

"Well, you can't exactly blame the mentors," Frostpaw mewed. "How in the name of StarClan would they have known that Two-Boulder Pass would crumble just when we were taking our assessment?" She paused, but her close friend didn't reply. "I thought so. Has Sandpaw finished her assessment?"

"No, I wanted to wait for you two," Sandpaw mewed, padding up to them.

"Great!" Frostpaw mewed. She pricked her ears as she heard a loud call. "Come on, the mentors are calling us." Ashpaw flicked his tail and spoke directly to his sister, his eyes growing serious.

"You go on. We'll catch up."

Frostpaw narrowed her eyes. "What's this about?"

Ashpaw purred, then twined his tail with hers. "Just... er... thanks. For saving me."

"I wouldn't have done it for anyone except you," Frostpaw mewed gently, feeling her cheeks grow warm. What had made her say that? True, she had always liked Ashpaw, and he had liked her, but they couldn't be mates! They were apprentices, for StarClan's sake!

"Thanks, Frostpaw." He stood and beckoned to her with his tail. "You coming? Let's go and finish the assessment!"

"Race you there!" Frostpaw teased, brushing past him and tearing out of the den. Ashpaw was at her heels, but gradually, she pulled ahead, her white fur gleaming in the late morning sunlight, her blue eyes shining with happiness as she pelted toward the mentors.

"That's not fair!" Ashpaw gasped, and Frostpaw slowed a little to hear him. "You're the fastest apprentice!"

"That's just the way it is!" Frostpaw teased, racing forward and skidding to a halt in order to not knock right into Sandpaw and Dawnflower. She dipped her head, her tail low as she realized that she had nearly bowled the unsuspecting Cinderblaze over. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," her mentor mewed.

"Great race!" Sandpaw mewed, at the same time.

Cinderblaze cleared her throat, calling for silence. "Now, there's one... actually two... new things about your assessments." Frostpaw rolled her eyes, earning herself a glare from Blueclaw. "First, we'll be evaluating you differently. Since Frostpaw came in first... with an injured leg, we'll give her a score of three. Sandpaw, Ashpaw, I think you should do another race, since Ashpaw was injured.

"Whoever out of the two of you finishes first gets a score of two, and the other gets a one," Cinderblaze continued. "Since we don't have the time to go to the lake again, we'll just tell you to go from here to... uh... what remains of Two-Boulder Pass."

Blueclaw nodded. "We'll be waiting there." With that, he let out a yowl, and Frostpaw joined in, watching intently as the two older apprentices pelted out of the clearing. "Let's go and wait." Before he could say anything else, Frostpaw bounded after the apprentices.

She swallowed a purr as Ashpaw pulled ahead of Sandpaw, then let out a gasp. "Frostpaw?"

Frostpaw raced over to what was now a pile of crumbled rocks and boulders, barely stopping before she tumbled into the rocks. Heartbeats later, Blueclaw and Cinderblaze paused beside her, panting, while Dawnflower was still racing toward them. "I'm going to beat you, Ashpaw!" a voice called. It was Sandpaw, trying to catch up to Ashpaw, who was taking long strides as he raced closer and closer.

"I don't think so!" Ashpaw halted in front of them, his tail straight up, and a grin on his face.

"Well done!" Frostpaw mewed, pressing against him. Though Sandpaw came in after, she was purring, nodding to her brother. She suppressed a purr of amusement as she saw Frostpaw and Ashpaw, their heads bent together.

"I guess you really like each other," she teased, goading her brother to bat his paws in her face.

"If you're quite finished," Dawnflower mewed drily, "then maybe we can continue. Ashpaw, you earned two, and Sandpaw, a one."

"So for each portion we rank you and add up your scores," Blueclaw added. "Anyway, the next thing we're doing is tree-climbing. Look-" He flicked his tail toward three ash trees, each about the same height. It almost hurt Frostpaw's eyes to stare up into the branches "-at those three. You'll each be climbing as fast as you can."

Frostpaw shot a glance at Sandpaw, who was purring. Climbing was probably what she was best at. Narrowing her blue eyes, she padded over to the tree she believed was the sturdiest. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Ashpaw choose the tree next to her.

Soon enough, the three mentors let out the signal yowl, and Frostpaw began. She sprang onto the lowest branch, then leaped to the next. "Wait!" she called out, making even the other apprentices freeze. "Do we climb the trunk or not?"

Dawnflower purred. "That's for you to decide. Now, continue!"

Frostpaw slowly scaled her way upward, sinking her claws into the soft ash bark. She slowly pulled herself upward, careful not to slip. Fastening her two forepaws on one of the branches, she flung herself upward, snagging her claws into one of the higher branches. She spotted Sandpaw jumping from branch to branch just above her, and Ashpaw was scaling the trunk just below.

She jumped to the next branch, then the next, then the next. She was sure she had disappeared from the mentors' view, hidden among the leaves. She almost fell off her branch when she saw Sandpaw break free of the leaves at the top of her tree. "I won!"

That left Frostpaw and Ashpaw, but Ashpaw was just at Frostpaw's heels. Barely pausing between branches, she jumped higher and higher, struggling not to look down. She resisted not to see how high up she was, for then she would surely fall then.

Finally, to her relief, she emerged from the leaves at the top. Ashpaw popped up in the neighboring tree a few heartbeats later.

"Well done!" Cinderblaze yowled. "Now, come down!"

Frostpaw widened her eyes as she saw Sandpaw jump onto a branch just below her, then leap down to the ground. _Is she all right?_ "It's fine!" Sandpaw called, jumping to her paws. "Don't be a scaredy-mouse!"

Ashpaw soared gracefully through the air a heartbeat later, landing beside his sister. That did it. Gritting her teeth, Frostpaw bunched her muscles, prepared to leap, then shuddered, and took a pace back. Sighing, she jumped to a branch below her, then reluctantly sprang to the ground. There was a brief ache in her foreleg, but it was all right.

"Well done, you three." It was Dawnflower who spoke. "First Sandpaw, then Frostpaw, then Ashpaw. So in total, each of you has-"

"Sandpaw, a four, Frostpaw, a five, and Ashpaw, a three," Cinderblaze finished.

Blueclaw nodded. "Next, you need to go and hunt. Whoever brings back the most prey by sundown wins. Now go!"


	6. Part 1 - Chapter 6

Her eyes drooping with exhaustion, Frostpaw padded into camp at almost the same time as Sandpaw. Ashpaw must have come in a little earlier, as Frostpaw spied her friend near the fresh-kill pile. She stopped short. For some reason, there were _two_ fresh-kill piles, though one was much smaller than the other. Cinderblaze seemed to be busy sorting out the smaller of the two, or, separating each piece of prey.

Ashpaw's blue eyes lit up as he saw her. He beckoned to Frostpaw with his tail.

Confused, Frostpaw padded over. "What's going on?" She dropped the rabbit at his feet.

"She's counting how much I caught!" Ashpaw mewed excitedly.

"You caught _all that?"_ Frostpaw gasped, her jaws open with wonder and amazement. Ashpaw nodded proudly, and Frostpaw recalled that he was an older apprentice, much more experienced. "I buried most of mine over there." She flicked her tail toward a bush.

"Can you bring it here?" Dawnflower mewed, her green eyes bright as she stared at her apprentice.

By the time Frostpaw returned, Sandpaw had fetched all her prey, too. Frostpaw suddenly felt small as she realized that both of the other apprentices had caught more than her, and her tail drooped. Cinderblaze was staring at the few pieces she had caught: a rabbit, two squirrels, and two mice.

"I'm sorry!" Frostpaw burst out. It wasn't as though her mentor was strict, but something just made Frostpaw always want to please her. "I should have caught more! I-" She was silenced as Cinderblaze flicked her tail over her jaws.

"Don't worry about it," Cinderblaze soothed. "In fact, I think you did quite well for such a young apprentice."

"Really?" Frostpaw asked, her eyes wide. Cinderblaze simply nodded, then turned her attention back to the older apprentices.

Blueclaw seemed satisfied as he stepped forward. "First Ashpaw, then Sandpaw, then Frostpaw." Frostpaw bent her head, her paws scuffling in the dirt. Angry at herself, she kicked a small stone sideways, watching it roll away. Cinderblaze laid her tail on Frostpaw's shoulder. She really could have a soothing effect on her.

"So," Dawnflower concluded. "Ashpaw has a six, Sandpaw has a - well, all three of you have a six!" She turned to Frostpaw. "I'm proud that you were able to even _tie_ with these two apprentices," she mewed gently. "Well done."

Frostpaw stared at the ground. "Thanks."

"Frostpaw, I spoke to Brackenstar," Cinderblaze mewed. "He said that you'll be able to have your final assessment before most normal apprentices do. It's in two moons." Frostpaw let out a purr, hardly believing it. "Of course, it took a while to convince him, but he agreed." She rolled her eyes. "The only apprentice he's ever liked is Nightclaw!"

 _That's just what I'm afraid of,_ Frostpaw thought.

Ashpaw rubbed against her. "That's wonderful! You're so lucky! Normally it takes you two and, maybe, a quarter, moons after your first assessment!" Frostpaw purred in return. She had been an apprentice for four moons, now.

But since Brackenstar favored Nightclaw over every cat, she couldn't help but think that it was just because her first assessment was a little late.

"Now, I know it's sunset already," Blueclaw mewed. "But Ashpaw and Sandpaw need to do pair hunting and tracking, which only occur in your final assessment. Frostpaw, I'm sure Cinderblaze will find you another task to do." He flicked his tail, and just like that, the two apprentices followed their mentors out into the forest.

Frostpaw stared after them for StarClan knew how long.

That is, until she was jerked back to the present by her mentor.

"Frostpaw, come on." Cinderblaze's tone suggested that she had been speaking to Frostpaw for quite a while, before she realized that the white apprentice hadn't been paying attention.

"What are we doing?"

Cinderblaze sighed. "Honestly, Frostpaw, you need to learn to pay attention!" Her tone softened. "We'll be doing your fighting assessment."

"When can we start?"

In answer, Cinderblaze sprang onto Frostpaw, making her let out a yowl of surprise as she was bowled over. "I told you, you need to pay attention!"

Frostpaw struggled for a few heartbeats, then, as her mentor gently bit down on the base of her neck, she went limp. Cinderblaze's grip loosened, as well, and Frostpaw surged upward triumphantly, throwing her off. Scrambling to her paws, she rushed forward to meet Cinderblaze head on, but the gray she-cat simply dodged her attack. Frostpaw hissed and darted under Cinderblaze, raked a soft paw on her underbelly, then rammed her head into her chest.

Cinderblaze let out a snarl, then swiped at her face. Frostpaw barely drew back in time, but she was suddenly swept off her feet. Before Cinderblaze could do anything more, she struggled free and dove forward, twisting so that her hind legs struck Cinderblaze in the face. The gray she-cat was bowled over, but was on her feet in a flash, pinning Frostpaw down in triumph.

"Well done, Frostpaw!" Cinderblaze mewed, releasing her. "You have the makings of a fine warrior." Frostpaw brightened as she realized that her mentor was panting a little.

"D-did I pass?" she ventured.

"Mouse-brain!" Cinderblaze teased, flicking her ear with her tail. "Of course you did!" Frostpaw bounced once on her paws, a gesture of happiness. Cinderblaze purred, figuring that the white she-cat was at a sudden loss for words. "Go and get some rest. I hope you're going to the gathering tomorrow."

 _Right! There's a gathering tomorrow!_ Frostpaw's crystal blue eyes shone. "I hope so, too!"

"Go on, now." Frostpaw dipped her head, then bounded over to the fresh-kill pile and selected a mouse for herself. With quick, famished gulps, she soon devoured the prey and stood up, shaking out her white fur. Before padding into the apprentices' den, she let out a purr of satisfaction as she saw Yellowgaze, the clan deputy, pick up the rabbit that she had caught.

The den was empty except for the nests. It would be a white before the older apprentices came back, she realized. Sighing, she curled up into her nest, and sleep crashed over her like a black wave.

Frostpaw had no idea how long it had been when she awoke again. But this time, it was because Ashpaw was clambering into the nest beside hers. "Are you mouse-brained?" she hissed angrily. She turned to Sandpaw. "Do you have any idea how late it is?"

"Blueclaw and Dawnflower kept us until we finished our entire assessment," Ashpaw muttered. Sandpaw's only reply was a yawn. Rolling her eyes, Frostpaw fell back into a sleep.


	7. Part 1 - Chapter 7

"Ashpaw, Sandpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your lives?" Brackenstar's voice was loud and deep as he spoke, nodding gratefully as the mentors gave their assent.

"I do." Ashpaw paused for less than a heartbeat before answering.

Sandpaw dipped her head. "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Ashpaw, from this moment onward you will be known as Ashflame. StarClan honors your bravery and strength, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan. Sandpaw, from this moment onward you will be known as Sandshade. StarClan honors your determination and courage, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

Frostpaw watched as, in turn, the two new warriors licked Brackenstar's shoulder and stepped back.

She would be the only one in the apprentices' den, now.

"Ashflame! Sandshade! Ashflame! Sandshade!" Frostpaw cheered along with the rest of the clan.

oO0Oo

Frostpaw's paws scrabbled as she struggled to get a firm grip on the fallen tree trunk. It was slippery from the rain that had fallen in the morning, announcing the coming of leaf-fall. Slowly, she dropped into a crouch and crept across, letting out a sigh of relief as she leaped onto the island.

"It's too wet for my taste," Ashflame grumbled from behind her, jumping onto the island as well. Frostpaw rolled her eyes.

"Of course it is! It rained!" she exclaimed, exasperated.

"Frostpaw! There you are!" a voice called, and the white apprentice turned to see Heatherpaw racing toward her. "I was looking all over for you!"

"Hi, Heatherpaw." Frostpaw let out a purr.

Heatherpaw let out a snort. "Heatherpaw? My name's Heather _shine,_ now. I'm a warrior!" She puffed out her chest proudly.

"That's a great name!" Ashflame remarked. "I'm a warrior, too. My name is Ashflame." Frostpaw rubbed against him affectionately and ran her soft, white tail over his gray back. She nodded, confirming, and touched noses with Heathershine, a gesture of friendship. They had grown close ever since Frostpaw had saved Heathershine from drowning in the lake. Naturally, as Ashflame was close to Frostpaw, he became friends with Heathershine, as well.

Frostpaw, somehow, didn't miss the flash of green eyes, and drew back from Heathershine abruptly, getting the feeling that they were being watched. And there was only one cat she could think of who could have been watching.

"Will you three hush for a bit?" An impatient voice sounded behind them. Mottlespring, a RiverClan elder, was the oldest cat in all the clans. Except for a dark scar across her face, Frostpaw could tell that she had once been a beautiful she-cat.

Ashflame looked as though he was stifling a purr. "Sorry, Mottlespring."

The dark brown mottled she-cat flicked her white tail-tip, her amber eyes narrowing. She snorted. "The leaders are speaking!"

It was true. Jaystar, the RiverClan leader, was perched on the highest branch of the Great Oak, and her blue eyes gleamed as she spoke. She was a dark gray she-cat, almost black except for her white underbelly and tail. "RiverClan is well. I am pleased to announce that we have two new apprentices. Runningpaw and Stonepaw!" She looked down at the four clans with pride.

Frostpaw joined in the cheer. "Runningpaw! Stonepaw! Runningpaw! Stonepaw!"

She located the two apprentices, both toms, sitting near them, their chests puffed out proudly. She crept closer to them, careful not to step on anyone's tail. "Congratulations," she purred, once she was within earshot.

The tom she guessed was Runningpaw gave a start. "Thanks," he muttered, while the other tom simply dipped his head.

"I'm Stonepaw," the gray tom mewed. "And that stupid furball over there-" he flicked his plumy tail toward his brown-furred brother "-is Runningpaw." Runningpaw playfully swiped at Stonepaw's face.

"So I heard," Frostpaw mewed. "I'm Frostpaw. This is my third gathering." She didn't need to turn to see that Ashflame and Heathershine had come up behind her. "I _almost_ couldn't come this time, but I wouldn't miss this for anything!"

"Why?" Stonepaw asked, narrowing his eyes.

In answer, Frostpaw lifted her forepaw. "I dislocated it." Lowering her voice, still so that Ashflame could hear, she added, "thanks to this stupid furball over here. He was caught in a rock fall, and I nearly failed my assessment trying to help him." Frostpaw was startled at her own words, even though her tone was playful.

"Hey!" Ashflame hissed. "How was I to know that Two-Boulder Pass would crumble when I ran past it?"

"That's Ashflame," Heathershine spoke up. "And I'm Heathershine of WindClan."

"Hush!" Mottlespring snapped. Frostpaw started. Was that RiverClan she-cat patrolling the place or something? Anyway, she sighed and quieted. Looking up, she realized that Jaystar had finished, and Birchstar, the ShadowClan leader, was speaking.

"...is well, and there is no news. The prey is running faster, but we have enough to supply us for leaf-fall." The cream-and-brown tom shook out his thick fur before dipping his head to Brackenstar, who sat below him.

"ThunderClan is also fine. We have two new warriors, Sandshade and Ashflame!" the bracken-colored tom announced proudly. Beside her, Ashflame puffed out his chest, his tail high. His blue eyes glittered as he raised his head high.

"Sandshade! Ashflame! Sandshade! Ashflame!" Frostpaw cheered loudest of all for the two new warriors.

"Also, Nightpaw has become Nightclaw, but he was made a warrior before Sandshade and Ashflame," Brackenstar mewed, dipping his head as he spoke.

"Nightclaw! Nightclaw!" the listening cats cheered. Frostpaw rolled her eyes, lowering her head so that the crowd wouldn't see that she wasn't cheering for her black-furred clanmate. _He really doesn't deserve to be a warrior._ Sighing, her feathery tail thumped against the ground as she pricked her ears, listening to Brackenstar.

"That is all," the bracken-colored tom mewed.

Frostpaw narrowed her eyes as she saw an all-too-familiar black tom stalk to the base of the Great Oak. "Brackenstar, may I speak?" Brackenstar seemed a little startled and flustered, but under the mocking glances of the other clans, he dipped his head. "I... want to report that I have seen WindClan stealing prey. I've seen a warrior or two, and I've caught multiple scents."

Even before he had finished, a chorus of indignant yowling broke out from the WindClan cats. Heathershine was among them.

Why would Nightclaw want to start this? Frostpaw was completely positive that there had been no sign of WindClan recently, so the treacherous black tom had to be lying. But why? Her thought was answered as he swung around, his green gaze meeting her blue one, and his eyes flicked toward how close Heathershine stood to her, and a smirk curled on his lips.

Then she understood.

Nightclaw wanted to get rid of all foreign relationships, and he also just wanted blood and battle.

Brightstar padded as close as she could to the crowd of cats without falling off her branch. Her ginger tabby fur was fluffed up, and from her green gaze to her white tail-tip, it was clear that she was furious. "How dare you?" she spat. "My warriors have not set so much as a _whisker_ over the border!"

Brackenstar's claws unsheathed. "Are you saying that Nightclaw is lying? He is a loyal warrior, and I trust his word over yours, Brightstar!"

"My clan would never steal!" Brightstar spat.

Brackenstar let out a snarl. "I believe what he is saying, Brightstar. If you want a battle, you can have one."

Frostpaw gazed upward, noting with horror that clouds were starting to float across the sky, blocking the moon from view. Brightstar let out a hiss, also realizing this, then turned to face the crowd. "Putting aside that revolting accusation," she stated, ignoring yowls from the ThunderClan cats, "WindClan has one new warrior. Heathershine!"

Frostpaw let out an encouraging yowl, but dipped her head apologetically to the WindClan she-cat as she realized that only a few cats actually cheered.

Nightclaw had started this to kill Heathershine, which might even be a sign to Frostpaw to show how powerful he could be, and that she would die if she told his secret. And, beside that, he was a bloodthirsty cat.

Amid the commotion, Frostpaw realized with a shudder that if there was to be a battle, Heathershine would never come out of it alive.


	8. Part 1 - Chapter 8

It was probably the millionth time in the past few minutes that Frostpaw wished that she wasn't where she was. It had been over a moon since the angry gathering, and Brackenstar had decided that battle was long overdue. Frostpaw didn't see why he would trust Nightclaw at all, anyway.

At the last gathering, to make it fair, he had told Brightstar that he would send a battle patrol to WindClan.

Unfortunately, Nightclaw was leading that patrol.

Frostpaw wished that she could somehow get a message to Heathershine, to be on her guard. Suddenly, she realized that Nightclaw had dropped behind to whisper to her in her ear. "So you've figured I'm after that _friend_ of yours, eh? Well, once I'm done with her, you'll see how strong I am, and you won't dare defy me!" And he padded back to the front.

"What's that?" Ashflame was next to her in a heartbeat. "What did he say?"

Frostpaw sighed. "He said-" she broke off, feeling Nightclaw's glare on her pelt. "-he didn't say anything of importance." Ashflame let out a snarl. "I'd tell you at a more convenient time, really."

There were already WindClan cats waiting for them, enough to take on their patrol. Nightclaw strode forward to meet them. "Leapordheart, is it?" He addressed the leader of the patrol, not even bothering to mask the sneer in his tone.

The spotted-furred WindClan warrior narrowed his amber eyes before nodding. His lips curled into a smirk. "Greetings to you too, Nightclaw. I wonder why the great Brackenstar chose a _new_ warrior to lead this battle patrol? Maybe he doesn't have enough warriors, eh?" Frostpaw's claws unsheathed, her neck fur bristling. She didn't care if Nightclaw was leading this patrol, but she would not let anyone insult her clan!

"I may be what you call a _new_ warrior," Nightclaw growled, "but I can see even experienced warriors in your patrol that hold the same skill as an apprentice." Ever so slightly, he bent his head toward Frostpaw, and Frostpaw hissed, realizing that he was mildly referring to her as weak.

Leopardheart hissed. "WindClan, attack!"

"ThunderClan, attack!" Nightclaw yowled, turning his gaze onto Heathershine, who crouched down, her gaze flickering from Frostpaw to Nightclaw. Frostpaw saw, to her surprise, that Nightclaw first headed toward where Leopardheart stood, rather than turning to Heathershine first. _He probably doesn't want to be too obvious,_ she thought grimly.

Dodging a black she-cat's attack, she darted toward Heathershine, who looked panicked. "Heathershine. You see Nightclaw? He wants to kill you." That's all she had time to say before a hefty white tom sprang onto her, spitting. Frostpaw recognized him as Blacktail, from gatherings. Rolling onto her back, she spat a challenge and pummeled his belly with her hind claws.

Through all the commotion, Heathershine had vanished. Frostpaw hissed in pain as Blacktail's claws struck her cheek. Frostpaw sprang to her paws, meeting him head on, but his weight crushed her under him. Flattening herself, the white she-cat slipped out and dealt him a strong blow on his flank. Whirling around, Blacktail let out a snarl and shoved her to the ground. Frostpaw yowled as his claws sliced just above her eye.

"Get off her! Pick on someone your own size!" a voice snapped, and the weight on Frostpaw lifted, as she found herself staring into the warm blue eyes of Ashflame. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but look out!" Her last words were raised to a shout as Blacktail whirled around, slamming his paws onto Ashflame's head. The gray tom ducked and swiped in retaliation. Leaving the two toms to fight it out, Frostpaw turned searching the thick of battle.

And whom should she come across but Nightclaw and Heathershine.

It was clear that Nightclaw was stronger. Heathershine's blows were growing feebler and feebler as she fought back weakly. Frostpaw dared not help her in front of Nightclaw, for she would be accused of being disloyal. But what else could she do?

She watched, horrified, as Nightclaw raked his claws across Heathershine's face, blinding her in one eye. Heathershine let out a scream and kicked out, missing the black tom completely. Suddenly, she was on the ground, and Frostpaw couldn't bear to keep watching. It was almost as though something was holding her blue eyes wide open.

Nightclaw didn't seem angry or wild. He seemed eerily calm. There was a look on his face that Frostpaw couldn't explain.

"Please! Don't kill me! You'd be breaking the warrior code!" Heathershine wailed, but Nightclaw's claws swiped across her belly, silencing her plea. Heathershine's gaze fixed on Frostpaw, her eyes pleading. "Frostpaw! Help me!"

But she couldn't. Her paws were rooted to the spot as Nightclaw's claws sliced her neck. She thrashed once, then fell still. Nightclaw vanished into the thick of battle. Lowering her head, she padded over to Heathershine. _I should have helped._ "I'm sorry, Heathershine," she whispered, then raced away, ramming into a dark brown tabby she-cat.

She stumbled, caught off guard, into another WindClan cat. Frostpaw purred as that cat loosened his grip on Cinderblaze as he fell.

"Heathershine is dead!" An anguished wail ran through the crowd, and Frostpaw flattened her ears. A dark gray she-cat crouched by the dead she-cat's body, tears streaming from her eyes and onto Heathershine's still pelt.

Leopardheart appeared beside her. "We will take her back, Smokemoon." Raising his voice to a howl, he added, "WindClan, retreat!"

"We won," Ashflame murmured, from beside her. His voice lacked emotion.

Frostpaw sighed. "Yeah. Great. But it was at such a price," she added, her gaze drifting to Heathershine's limp body, being carried by Leopardheart and Smokemoon. Nightclaw stalked over to Frostpaw and Ashflame, his eyes lit in triumph.

"May we have a word in private, Frostpaw?" he asked with cold politeness. _What will he do if I refuse?_ Not taking the chance, Frostpaw nodded and followed him into the shelter of a bush. "You saw me kill that pretty little friend of yours, Heathershine, was it?" Frostpaw nodded. "If I didn't you and she would remain friends, and we have no place for such disloyalty.

"I saw you under the claw-moon," he growled lowly. "I saw you. With her. There can be no disloyalty when I am in the clan. Plus, now that she's dead, you see how much power I have. She lost so badly to me, as you saw. I was just playing with her, then I struck."

And with that, Nightclaw padded away.

Frostpaw padded after him, but turned toward Ashflame. "What did he say?"

"Nothing!" Frostpaw snapped. "Sorry, but it's nothing, really."

Ashflame didn't look convinced. "I want to know if that dumb furball is hurting you, okay?" Startled by his intensity, Frostpaw nodded, knowing inside that she was lying.

"Thanks, Ashflame. But I can take care of myself, you know I can."

oO0Oo

"Well done, Frostpaw!" It had been two moons since the battle with WindClan, and Frostpaw had just finished her final assessment. She proudly dropped her prey onto the fresh-kill pile. "I'll tell Brackenstar to make you a warrior immediately."


	9. Part 1 - Chapter 9

"We gather today to welcome into our warrior ranks an apprentice who is well-deserving of this position," Brackenstar mewed calmly. His golden fur shone in the evening light, and his amber eyes shone as he gazed down. "Frostpaw."

"Go on," Ashflame murmured.

"Yeah, you deserve it!" Sandshade whispered.

Encouraged, Frostpaw stepped forward, and the clans automatically moved outward, leaving her alone in the center. "Cinderblaze." The ThunderClan leader addressed Frostpaw's mentor, and Frostpaw saw the gray she-cat puff out her chest from the side of the crowd. "Is your apprentice ready?"

"She will be a worthy warrior," Cinderblaze confirmed, making Frostpaw let out a relieved breath.

Dipping his head, Brackenstar turned to the white she-cat in the center. "Frostpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," she mewed certainly. _But that's a lie,_ she thought. _If I were to do that, then I would come out and reveal Nightclaw's secret!_

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Frostpaw, from this moment onward you will be known as Frostfire. StarClan honors your determination and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

Ashflame was the first to cheer as Frostfire licked Brackenstar's shoulder respectfully. "Frostfire!"

Sandshade joined in. "Frostfire! Frostfire!"

Nightclaw called out her name only once, but that was probably only to make the clan believe he supported the new warrior. But he didn't.

oO0Oo

"Frostfire?" a voice called. Frostfire jumped to her paws, alert at once. It was dawn of the next day, and the white warrior was sure that she would fall asleep any moment. The clouds parted, letting a shaft of sunlight shine on the speaker, revealing it to be Yellowgaze. "It's dawn, your vigil is over."

"Thank StarClan!" Frostfire yawned, stretching her stiff paws.

"How was it?" Ashflame asked, padding out of the warriors' den.

"Long and tiring," she grumbled, exhausted.

Ashflame touched his nose to hers comfortingly. "Yeah, I know. Go on, get some rest." When Frostfire opened her jaws to object, she was cut off by her own yawn. "I know you're tired, Frostfire. I made you a nest beside mine." He flicked his tail, and Frostfire padded into the warriors' den.

Sniffing carefully, Frostfire located Ashflame's nest, and a nest beside it that contained almost no scent. Guessing that this was hers, she curled up into it and fell fast asleep. But she didn't feel secure. It was as though Nightclaw would try and kill her in her sleep. Shuddering at the very thought, she closed her eyes and tuched her tail around herself protectively.

When she awoke, Moonflower stood before her. "Not again!" she snapped.

"No, it's important, Frostfire. You must understand. The prophecy isn't something to be ignored! It's your destiny!"

"And I can choose whether or not to follow it," Frostfire shot back.

Moonflower sighed. "I suppose you're right," she stated sarcastically. "Oh, I guess it's not the prophesied cat's fault if danger destroys the clan, when the cat is completely able to stop it, right, Frostfire?" Frostfire rolled her eyes.

"Well, I know that much, Moonflower! I know that Nightclaw's a danger!"

"Then why not act on it?" the silver she-cat shot back.

Frostfire sighed. "All in good time."

"Make it happen _before_ he destroys the forest, will you?"

"Yeah, but just stop it with the prophecy! I mean, I know that I need to get rid of Nightclaw, and I don't need to be a StarClan cat to figure that out!"

oO0Oo

"Hey, Frostfire!" The voice was Ashflame's. He looked somehow... uncomfortable. "Er..."

"Come on, spit it out," she mewed.

"Uh... do you want to come down to the lake with me?" he asked, his paws scuffling embarrassedly on the ground, surrounding his lower body with a cloud of rising dust. Flicking her white tail, now a pale brown color from the dust, Frostfire brightened.

"Sure! Race you there!" she teased, knowing fully well that she would win.

Ashflame rolled his eyes. "Not fair!"

"Is too! Go!" She sprinted ahead of him easily, tearing through the forest, toward the lake. She had been on this path just a few moons ago, during her first assessment. She tore past the Sky Oak and raced through the trees, swerving around the trunk, ducking under low branches, and leaping gracefully over fallen logs, until the lake came into view.

"I won!" she teased, grinning.

Heartbeats after she spoke, Ashflame skidded directly into her, knocking the unsuspecting she-cat into the water. Spluttering, she surfaced, dragging herself onto the lake shore. "Mouse-brain! What in the name of StarClan did you do that for?"

Ashflame let out a purr. "You looked funny."

"I'm not a RiverClan cat! I shouldn't look _graceful,_ should I?"

"Nope!" Ashflame replied. Then, his blue eyes darkened, and his expression grew serious. "Uh... Frostfire, I came with you here for a reason, and... well, I wanted to say that, now since we're warriors..."

"Oh, come on!" Frostfire teased. "Out with it, whatever it is!"

"Uh... I've liked you ever since you're a kit, and... now... I love you, Frostfire." He pressed warmly against Frostfire. She was a little surprised, but she didn't pull away. She touched noses with him, twining her tail with his, her damp, white pelt brushing his gray one.

"I love you, too, Ashflame."

And the two of them stayed together for a while, enjoying each other's warm embrace.


	10. Part 1 - Chapter 10

Frostfire stared up idly at the gray sky, sighing as the dark storm clouds shook, bringing heavy floods of rain onto the unusually dull and empty ThunderClan camp. Shivering as rain soaked her pelt in heatbeats, she padded into the warriors' den. The fresh-kill pile had been moved into the shade of the nursery, as no queens resided there now. The patrols had returned earlier, and no more had gone, for fear of flooding.

Brackenstar padded into the warriors' den. It was rare that he did so, so it took many cats by surprise. His amber gaze scanned the den. "Where's Yellowgaze?"

"He said he was going on a walk," Brindlefrost mewed, from where she was curled up in her nest in the corner of the den.

Brackenstar nodded. "Now, I want any cat who is leaving the camp to ask me before they leave. Okay?" Frostfire dipped her head along with many other warriors in the den. "Good. Now... I want Nightclaw to go and find Yellowgaze as fast as possible."

For some reason, Nightclaw's green eyes lit up, but in a sadistic way, and he bounded out of the warriors' den and into the rain. Watching him go with narrowed eyes, Frostfire barely realized that Brackenstar had left.

"Hello? Frostfire?" Ashflame sounded exasperated. When she finally turned to face him, he sighed. "You were in a world of your own."

"Wait here. I need to go on a walk. I... er, have got some thinking to do." Her excuse was lame, but thankfully, Ashflame didn't seem to notice. She actually wanted to keep a close eye on Nightclaw. Ashflame nodded, looking bewildered, and Frostfire raced out into the clearing, then turned toward Brackenstar's den. The leader was settled in his nest, his amber eyes glazed over, as though he was deep in thought.

"Frostfire?" Brackenstar sounded confused. "What brings you here?"

Frostfire swallowed. She hadn't come prepared with an excuse. "I wanted to leave camp."

"Why?"

Frostfire was hoping he wouldn't have asked that. "I want to go for a walk. I have some thinking to do, and I think best when it's raining." Brackenstar narrowed his eyes but didn't press her any further, just dipped his head.

Nodding respectfully, Frostfire turned and raced out of the leader's den, her blue eyes narrowed in determination, ignoring the heavy rain that drenched her white fur. Her jaws open, she suddenly wished that it wasn't raining. The water could have already masked Nightclaw's scent by now! Her tail lashing in frustration, Frostfire padded into the forest.

 _There._ Frostfire's heart soared as she saw the final bit of a black tail vanishing deeper into the forest. Dropping to a crouch, she crept forward, hating the fact that her fur was white and more noticeable. After diving into a clump of ferns to hide her scent, she rolled into wet dirt, making her pelt look as though it was brown with a few white patches.

Shivering as the icy cold rain ran through her pelt, Frostfire crept closer to the black tom. He was sniffing the air, probably checking for signs of the ThunderClan deputy. Frostfire followed him through the territory.

Suddenly, she stopped short. Nightclaw seemed to have vanished. Then, she spotted him, padding toward a clearing. Frostfire followed, stopping and crouching behind a bush as Nightclaw padded into the clearing. And there stood Yellowgaze, turned away from him.

"Ah, Yellowgaze," Nightclaw mewed. "Brackenstar's been looking for you." He paused, letting the older tom turn around, his yellow eyes dull. His lips curled into a smirk. "And so have I." His lips parted revealing claw-sharp teeth.

Frostfire shivered, but Yellowgaze didn't seem to get the ominous warning in his words. "Why?"

"He wants you back at camp," Nightclaw growled. "But you won't get there. Not ever."

"Why not?" Yellowgaze asked. Frostfire bit back a yowl. How could the deputy not hear the evil in his former apprentice's words. In answer, Nightclaw bowled the tom over, pinning him down, his unsheathed claws gleaming in the half-light. _Just as I suspected._

"What are you doing, Nightclaw?" Yellowgaze sounded puzzled rather than angry at the black tom. He barely struggled under the younger cat.

Nightclaw's claws scored a deep gash in his belly. Yellowgaze thrashed around, striking Nightclaw's shoulder. "ThunderClan needs a new leader. Not some old cat like you. And I think I'm just the right cat for the job. I soon will rule over the clans!" With that, Yellowgaze fell limp, his yellow eyes glazing over.

It was so quick, Yellowgaze's death. Feeling sick with horror, Frostfire stumbled back, into a soft, furry, gray pelt.

"Ashflame!" she gasped, quietly.

"It's terrible, isn't it?" he asked softly.

"You followed me!" Her shock gave way to anger at her mate. She let out a hiss, but Ashflame let his tail sweep over her back.

"Hush," Ashflame mewed. "Let's talk, but not here." Casting a quick glance at Nightclaw standing over Yellowgaze's still body, she turned and darted through the woods, toward the Sky Oak, which was rather far from this clearing.

Finally stopping beneath the shade of the large tree, Frostfire shuddered, her eyes filling with tears. Because of the rain, she hoped it wouldn't be too obvious that tears streamed from her eyes. Tears of shock, anger, indignation, and horror. "What is it?" she spat. "You followed me, when I told you not to!"

"No," Ashflame mewed. "Well, yes, but... I've seen you acting weird ever since you were a young apprentice and Mistpaw died. And when you told me you were just going for a walk, it was easy to see that you were lying. I know you better than that."

"You shouldn't have done it!" Frostfire gasped.

Ashflame sighed. "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul." He paused. "I swear that by StarClan."

"Okay, let me tell you everything. When I was an apprentice, I saw Nightclaw kill Mistpaw. He swore me to secrecy, though. Then, he killed Heathershine in battle because he saw me with her, and he wanted to show how much power he had." The words were spilling out of her faster and faster. "And now, this. I always knew he was a bloodthirsty, ambitious killer, but now I have proof."

Ashflame's eyes blazed. "Anything else?"

"Oh, yeah. That scar on his chest? In a perfect claw-moon shape? It's not a sign, it's just him, up to his tricks again. He wanted to gain support from the clan, but all he gained was dividing it. I think he wanted 'proof' that he was chosen by StarClan."

"No."

"Yes."

"It can't be."

"Yes."

"I never trusted him, but I never thought... he would do _this."_

oO0Oo

Frostfire paced back and forth in the clearing. It was the evening of the same day, and fortunately, the rain had cleared, giving way to pure sunshine. The deputy ceremony was yet to happen, and Brackenstar seemed to be waiting until it was almost moonhigh.

 _It could be Ambershine,_ she told herself. Ambershine was a popular choice, a bright orange she-cat who was intelligent and strong. But inside, she knew that Brackenstar would choose Nightclaw over any cat. She lashed her feathery tail in frustration, as she saw Brackenstar bound out of his den and onto the Highledge.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" _You didn't have to hold a meeting,_ Frostfire thought crossly. _We all know who your choice will be._ "Cats of ThunderClan, I say these words before the body of Yellowgaze, so StarClan will hear and approve my choice. Nightclaw will be the new deputy of ThunderClan."


	11. Part 1 - Chapter 11

Frostfire was seething, just fuming. She stalked back and forth across the clearing of the ThunderClan camp. Though she had always seen this coming, now that it had happened, she was left staggering. Her tail lashed from side to side as she stormed across the grass. How could Brackenstar do this? How could he promote the cat that was nothing but a bloodthirsty murderer, with a hunger for power? Honestly, from the elders' tales, he was no better than Tigerstar!

Nearly spitting with fury, Frostfire could hardly contain her emotions, though it had been almost a day since Nightclaw was appointed deputy.

Aspenclaw padded over to her from inside the warriors' den. He looked confused, but a little wary of her anger. Frostfire hissed as he approached, but he didn't back away. She had never really known the dark gray tom with white flecks over his pelt, but he seemed a friendly cat.

"Hey," he mewed cooly. "What's wrong?"

Frostfire rolled her eyes and met his challenging amber stare with a flippant blue gaze. "Oh, nothing's wrong. Why should anything be wrong?"

"Really, I know you better than that," Aspenclaw shot back. _Really? I don't know you that well at all._

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." His voice softened. "You wanted to be deputy?"

Now, _that_ took Frostfire completely by surprise. She stared at him, completely startled. How could he have suggested that? "No!" she protested honestly. "I did not want to! How could you suggest such a thing? I'm so young!"

"Calm down!" Aspenclaw mewed. "Anyway, you're not young. You've been a warrior for around two seasons now, you know."

"Whatever." Frostfire snorted and stalked away. Aspenclaw watched her go, the same vague look on hsi face. Frostfire rolled her eyes at her friend's behavior. Her thoughts wandered, but everything somehow seemed to be linked to Nightclaw and his deputyship. She sighed, and let out a hiss. She knew that she could have stopped this by now, been a loyal warrior by giving her life for the code, but she couldn't.

And somehow, she knew that Moonflower wouldn't want that.

But still! If she was a true warrior, she would have given away Nightclaw's secret. Frostfire winced, torn in two. She found that her paws had somehow carried her to the lake, where she could think alone, in peace, of what she could do.

The name Frostfire suited her, she realized. She was torn in two, just like frost and fire. Her two sides, one of loyalty to the warrior code, and the other in fear of harm coming to the clan, clashed, just like frost and fire.

It made just no sense. She didn't understand it. If she obeyed the code and spilled the secret, then Nightclaw would bring down his wrath and treachery on the entire clan, which would hurt the clan anyway. Which was better? Why had StarClan chosen such a destiny for her? It wasn't fair. She had so much resting on her shoulders. And she was completely torn in two.

Frostfire opened her jaws, but no words came out. Instead, she choked out a sob, and a moan spilled from her throat, pitiful to hear. She crumpled to the ground, tears spilling from her eyes. Her crystal blue eyes shone even more than usual, but this time it was a duller, more glazed over shine. Frostfire sobbed for Heathershine, for the warrior code, for how she was torn in two, for everything she had ever cared about, her chest heaving as she gasped for breath.

"Why, StarClan?" she wailed. "Why did you choose _me_ of all the cats you could have chosen? Why me?"

There was no reply, just the steady darkening of the evening sky. Frostfire shivered, her white fur bristling as the gray clouds above parted, revealing the faintest twinkle that showed the onset of night. The stars glimmered brightly, though one more brightly than others, and that one grew and grew until it would have been the size of a cat.

Frostfire watched, awed, as the star vanished, leaving a silver she-cat that she knew only too well. "Moonflower!"

The sliver tabby dipped her head to Frostfire, then silently padded past her. Startled, Frostfire turned to see her vanish into a clearing. She padded between the trees and found only that clearing illuminated by a golden light, and found herself unable to speak in awe. Then she realized she wasn't alone. Multiple StarClan cats stood in the clearing, their pelts shimmering with starlight.

Just like Moonflower, they didn't seem to notice she was there, either. And Moonflower herself was nowhere to be seen. To her surprise, the StarClan cats formed two lines, facing each other. Frostfire watched.

"If Frostfire feels that it cannot be done, no one can help us," a dark red she-cat mewed, from the left of Frostfire.

"But what are we supposed to do, Redflower?" a dark gray tom asked, from the right, his green eyes wide.

"I cannot say," the cat called Redflower mewed softly. "Only that we need to make Frostfire find out her true destiny. If not, the clans will be destroyed."

"Impossible!" a yellow-gray she-cat stepped forward, from beside the gray tom, her tail lashing angrily. "Frostfire knows what she is to do!"

A blue-gray she-cat near Redflower shook her head. "No, Yellowfang. She doesn't know what she should do."

"But is it fair to place so much weight on her shoulders, Bluestar?" a ginger tom asked, padding forward to stand beside Yellowfang.

Bluestar sighed, her tail drooping a little. "Maybe not, but the clans cannot fall because of that wretched Nightclaw, Firestar!" Her blue eyes regained their former blaze as she met Firestar's green gaze challengingly. "Frostfire must act soon!"

"No. No, wait." A new voice spoke, and Frostfire watched as a tortoiseshell she-cat padded forward from beside the gray tom.

"Spottedleaf?" Bluestar asked. "What is it?"

Spottedleaf shook her head. "You don't understand. Supposing Frostfire does follow her destiny, what will happen then? She will have to wait for the right time!"

"And you know what this _right time_ is, do you?" Redflower hissed. "We can't wait any longer!"

Spottedleaf let out a hiss. "We must! Nightclaw is deputy. It's a warrior's word against a deputy's!"

"But some of the clan will believe her!" Redflower returned.

"Yes, but we need to wait for the right time!" Spottedleaf repeated, and Firestar dipped his head quickly. This was greeted with yowls of support from the right and indignation from the left. Frostfire watchd, horrified, as Redflower unsheathed her claws and tore through the ground, while Firestar crouched, muscles tensing as though ready to spring.

"What have I done?" Frostfire whispered in horror, backing away. "StarClan is divided because of me!"

"You see now?" a soft voice mewed from behind her. Moonflower stood there, her expression one of thoughtful sadness. "You need to make things right, Frostfire! Fulfill the prophecy as soon as you can, and bring StarClan back together!"


	12. Part 1 - Chapter 12

_Go and fulfill the prophecy as soon as you can, and bring StarClan back together._ The words rung in Frostfire's mind, and despite how much she tried shaking Moonflower's pleading words out of her mind, they stayed, much to her annoyance.

"Well?" Ashflame asked. The two were on a hunting patrol, and were hunting together.

Frostfire snapped back to focus. "Sorry, what?"

Ashflame sighed. "You've been different lately, ever since the battle with WindClan. You've been in your own world, more or less. There was that day when a patrol found you by the lake, alone, just staring at nothing. And you've been moping around for so long, or, at least, being unhappy for so long, Frostfire."

"Is that my fault?" Frostfire snapped, jerking her head around to face her mate.

"Well, no, but-"

"Actually, there's something I haven't told you yet," Frostfire mewed urgently. "It's about Moonflower."

"What's a moonflower?" Ashflame asked, looking perplexed.

Frostfire would have laughed out loud, but she couldn't, not with her current situation. "No, she's a cat. A StarClan cat, and... she's veen visiting my dreams." She reached a paw out to silence Ashflame, as he was about to speak. "Well... it's just that she said that _I'm_ the one who's supposed to stop Nightclaw, but I don't know how!" Her voice rose to a wail, and she left out about how she had divided StarClan.

Ashflame looked shocked. "Let me get this straight. A StarClan cat decided to visit _you_ and told you that you had to bring down one of the strongest warriors in all the clans?"

"Well..." Frostfire was uncomfortable. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

To her horror, Ashflame drew away from her abruptly, and Frostfire was startled to see that he was almost in tears. "I can't do this."

"What?"

"I'd only stop you from achieving your destiny!" Ashflame mewed, anguished. "I _love_ you, Frostfire, and I don't want that to happen." With that, he whirled around and bounded away through the trees, leaving Frostfire staring, open-jawed, after him.

 _No!_ _Why did I say that?_ Frostfire swallowed a wail and felt tears spring to her own eyes. Ashflame, whom she loved more than anything, though that she had too important a destiny to have time for him. No, he got it wrong. Drawing in a deep breath, Frostfire turned and raced after him. The whind whipped hard against her face, almost blinding her as she ran after the gray tom.

 _Where did he go?_ Ashflame's scent seemed to have vanished into nothing.

Heartbeats later, Frostfire spotted the familiar light gray pelt a few tree-lengths away. Though she was faster, her legs were weak from sadness and worry, and she probably could not reach him soon. Still, she charged after him, heading toward ShadowClan territory. Her vision narrowed, and for a while she could only see Ashflame and nothing else surrounding.

Ashflame's thick gray pelt the only thing in her mind, Frostfire raced after him. _Where did he go?_

She skidded to a halt, realizing that she had lost sight of her mate - or should she still call him that now? As she scanned the area, she let out a gasp of horror, taking in her surroundings. The ground beneath her was hard and gray, unlike the soft forest ground of ThunderClan territory, and the air reeked of a burning scent.

She was standing in the middle of the Thunderpath.

Frostfire stood stone-still, unable to move, her paws rooted to the spot. She was frozen in fear as her blue gaze landed on a distinctive, large reddish shape, growing larger and larger as it raced toward her. _A monster!_

Frostfire stood, frozen with terror. Suddenly, she was jolted back. _Move!_ she told herself fiercely, but she knew it was useless. She felt pain scorch her body as she crumpled to the ground, and the last thing she saw was the monster vanishing into the distance, before the world went black.

oO0Oo

Frostfire awoke, feeling a stabbing pain in her hind leg as she opened her eyes. Everything was blurred for a few heartbeats before she made out that she was in the medicine den, Snowpaw and Poppylight standing anxiously above her. Painfully pushing herself to a sitting position, Frostfire blinked. "What happened?"

"We found you on the Thunderpath," Snowpaw mewed quietly.

"How long have I been unconscious?" Frostfire asked, a dull pain in her leg making her wince a little.

Poppylight swallowed. "A little less than a quarter moon."

 _"What?"_ Frostfire jumped to her paws, stifling a yowl of pain as her hind leg touched the ground. Whimpering, she lifted the leg up as she walked.

"It was bleeding badly," Snowpaw mewed. "And it was twisted. I'd say you're lucky, Frostfire. Most cats don't come out of the Thunderpath after being hit without a broken bone. Anyway... it'll heal. You'll be fine."

Frostfire forced out a purr. "Thanks, Snowpaw."

Snowpaw shot a glance at her red-furred mentor, who nodded. "Actually... well, it's Snowblossom, now," the brown-and-white she-cat mewed. "The day you were hit... it was the half-moon, remember?"

"Congratulations!" Frostfire mewed fervently, dipping her head. "You deserve it!"

Heartbeats later, Ashflame padded into the den. Frostfire eyed him warily, but he showed no signs of anger. "I was so worried, Frostfire. How are you?"

"It's twisted, and I'll be okay in a few days," Frostfire mewed. Ashflame touched noses to her gently, then sat up in the nest beside her. His face softened into a smile, and his blue eyes gleamed with affection.

"Uh... should I leave you two?" It was Snowblossom, looking uncomfortable. Frostfire purred, then shrugged, to which she responded by padding away.

"About what I said-" Frostfire began.

Ashflame stiffened. "I stand by what I say," he mewed. "I don't want to come in your way. Just know that I always love you, Frostfire."

Frostfire shut her eyes, pain, aside from the one in her leg, flooding her senses. "Ashflame... please... it won't come in the way... besides, if StarClan knew I had such an important destiny, wouldn't they send something to keep us apart? It won't come in the way, I promise!"

Ashflame's tail-tip twitched uncertainly.

"Please, Ashflame. StarClan wouldn't object. I mean, if they knew you'd come in the way, they'd do something. StarClan aren't mouse-brained, Ashflame," she added, with a touch of her old enthusiasm. "They wouldn't let the clan be destroyed."

Ashflame let out a purr. "I was hoping nothing would keep us apart," he murmured. "But when this came up... well... I thought it would be bad for the clan, getting in the way of something so important. But now I see what you mean. Nothing can separate us now." He purred. "I promise."


	13. Part 1 - Chapter 13

Frostfire purred, relaxing at Ashflame's gentle touch. "Sleep now," he murmured. She opened her jaws to protest, but he cut her off. "I'll sleep too, if you like. I'll be here when you wake."

Sighing, Frostfire reluctantly closed her eyes, her tail curling around her paws.

When she awoke, it was into a land she had definitely seen before, in a beautiful grassy area near a pool of shimmering starlight. She was in StarClan, though what she saw next took away the happiness she should have felt.

A crowd of cats stood, divided by a huge gap down the middle. They were shouting insults at each other. "You don't know what's right and wrong!" Yellowfang hissed, her claws tearing up the grass beneath her.

"Well, you couldn't guide a mouse!" a gray tom mewed.

"You're not fit to be in StarClan if you can't help, or tell what should be done!" A third cat yowled, an unfamilar black tom. That was the final straw. Now, every StarClan cat had unsheathed claws, and some were already slicing at each other.

Frostfire swallowed. _This is all my fault!_ Frostfire padded over to the glittering pool that seemed full of stars, and looked into it.

She knew that that was how a living cat got in and out of StarClan, though usually, they wouldn't notice it coming in. She stared down, then saw herself sleeping in the medicine den, Ashflame staring over her. He seemed worried as he glanced over her still pelt, and finally, he lay back, closing his eyes.

Heartbeats later, Frostfire almost yowled in shock. Ashflame appeared out of the starlit pool, then padded into the clearing beside her. He looked equally shocked. "Don't worry, I'm not dead," he joked half-heartedly. "What are you doing here?"

Frostfire flicked her tail toward the hostile StarClan cats, her blue eyes gleaming with sorrow and pain. "I'm the cause of it," she murmured.

"How?"

"They started by arguing over when would be the right time for me to destroy Nightclaw," Frostfire mewed softly. "Then, now, they arguing about how well they guide me, and how well they know right against wrong."

"StarClan are divided?" Ashflame gasped, receiving a nod.

Then, it struck her. A way to fix things was so simple, Frostfire was confused why she hadn't thought of it before! "I see it now," she mewed, half to herself. "I see that there is only one way to fix these things and bring StarClan back together."

Slowly, she padded away from Ashflame, then stared down into the pool. Her claws unsheathed, and she raised them toward her neck, ready to pierce down and greet StarClan solving their quarrels by breaking her own destiny.

Breathing in, Frostfire's blue eyes were clear. _It's for the best._

Behind her, she heard Ashflame let out a cry. "No, Frostfire! There's a better way! There _has_ to be!" Ignoring him, Frostfire placed her sharp claws on the base of her throat, closing her eyes tightly. But she wasn't able to plunge her claws into her throat, for something unseen shoved her, and Frostfire flailed helplessly as she landed in the pool.

Gasping, she opened her eyes into the medicine den, and saw Ashflame awake beside her. "You pushed me!"

"I had to!" Ashflame retorted. "You would have died!"

"It was the only way!" Frostfire hissed. "If I joined StarClan, that would end any hopes of me and my oh-so-great destiny!" She surprised herself by speaking so carelessly about her future.

"And end the clans with it?" Ashflame countered. Frostfire was silent. "I thought so. You're the only one able to do this Frostfire. You must live!" His eyes flashed with an emotion she had never seen in his eyes before: fear. "The clan can't lose you!" His voice softened. " _I_ can't lose you."

Frostfire nodded, somewhat convinced. "What do you think I should do?" she asked helplessly.

"There's only one thing you _can_ do," Ashflame mewed. "Go back to StarClan, and talk to the cats, and tell them that you'll know yourself when to act."

Frostfire rolled her eyes. "You can't just _purposely_ dream yourself into StarClan, you know."

"Well, try!"

"All right," Frostfire mewed. "But not now. I can't sleep so soon." Her expression changed to one of curiosity. "By the way, how did you know to push me into the pool to bring me back here?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

Ashflame shrugged. "Well, once I realized what you were going to do, I pushed you into a pool, hoping to stop you from killing yourself. And then, you didn't come back up, so I jumped in after you, and I woke up." He smiled then nuzzled her affectionately.

Frostfire let out a purr. "Thank you. I'm glad you did." She paused. "I guess I just wasn't thinking clearly."

"Do you ever?"

"Hey!" the white she-cat protested playfully, cuffing her mate around the ear. He retaliated by springing gently onto Frostfire's back, but she rolled over and let out an inaudible whimper as her hind leg connected gently with Ashflame's belly.

It seemed that Ashflame heard, as he immediately jumped off her. "Are you all right?"

"Of course!" Frostfire swiped teasingly at his face, causing him to duck in surprise and bowl her over.

"Hey, you two!" an angry yowl sounded from deeper inside the den.

"Uh-oh," Ashflame muttered, only half-joking as he sprang off of Frostfire.

A dark red she-cat padded toward them, her tail lashing. "Take it easy, Frostfire!" she chided. "I haven't tried to heal you just for you to injure yourself again!" Ashflame and Frostfire watched her stalk away, then burst into amused purrs.

For inside, they knew that nothing would keep them apart.


	14. Part 1 - Chapter 14

Frostfire sighed in relief as Poppylight nodded. "Yes, you may." She let out a dry cough. "Though, _normally_ I would have you stay longer, which you may, if-"

"No! No thanks, Poppylight!" Frostfire mewed desperately, bounding out of the medicine den. She sniffed. Her hind leg still hurt just a little if she put pressure on it, but she supposed that was just normal. Purring, her blue eyes wide in excitement, Frostfire sprinted forward, almost knocking the smallish fresh-kill pile over as Ashflame jumped out of her way.

"You're finally out of there!" Ashflame gasped, looking cheerful. "That's great!"

"Honestly, I don't see how a cat can get injured so often and stay in the medicine den so long," a cat snorted, padding past. Frostfire turned to see that it was Brightwing, one of the warriors who were slightly older than Ashflame. The tabby-and-white she-cat had never found Frostfire her favorite cat, but she knew that Frostfire was a loyal warrior all the same.

"At least I was strong enough to sustain my own in battle," Frostfire mewed evenly, thinly veiling her reference to the two long scars that marred her elegant pelt: one that scored from the top of her nose to the soft fur beside her jaw, and the one that lay from her flank to the top of her belly.

Huffing, Brightwing narrowed her eyes. "What did you do, stand in the middle of the Thunderpath so that a monster could easily ride over you?"

"No!" Frostfire protested. She sighed. "All right, I know you think I'm weird, but how weird do you think I am?" Purring, Brightwing padded away without a reply, disappearing heartbeats later into the warriors' den.

The two cats didn't exactly _hate_ each other, but they weren't as friendly as they could have been. Still, there were moments when they actually were friendly to each other.

Frostfire turned to face Ashflame, only to find that he had vanished. "Ashflame!" she snapped angrily.

"You were looking for me?" a voice asked, and Frostfire whirled around to see Ashflame spring out of a fern bush. She let out a yowl of alarm, then quieted sheepishly, laughing weakly. Frostfire purred as his eyes widened with false innocence.

"You startled me!"

"I did?"

oO0Oo

Frostfire stalked closer, her tail lifted as she crept silently forward. Her gaze shifted slightly to the two squirrels she had already caught on this patrol, then shifted back to the vole she was stalking. She bunched her muscles, ready to spring, her eyes already lit with triumph.

She let out a yowl of shock as a shadow fell over her, and she looked up, to see Ashflame, leaping gracefully from tree to tree until he was just above her. He slipped as he flew toward the branch, falling and dropping directly onto the startled Frostfire. "Ashflame!" she protested, sliding out from under him. She stood up and faced him. "Flying is best left to birds, you know! You scared off the prey I was stalking!"

"Sorry, Frostfire!" Ashflame apologized quickly. "I was looking for you. Brackenstar wants me and you to lead a training thing with warriors only. Thinks we should sharpen our skills a little." Frostfire narrowed her eyes.

"Let me get this straight. _Brackenstar_ wants to see _us_ lead a training session with experienced _warriors?"_

"Well... yeah..."

"I think you should ask Duskfire about this. She's leading the patrol, so-" Frostfire began.

"Okay."

oO0Oo

"Well done, you all!" Frostfire yowled, her cheek stinging as she broke away from Blossomshade. The older warrior had pressed her paw against it, hard, and when Frostfire had finally broken free, the area still burned with pain.

One pair of fighters did not stop. Brightwing and Grayleaf swiped at each other, ducking and rolling. Suddenly, they separated, but still eyed each other distrustfully. Grayleaf let out a hiss, her lips drawn back in a snarl, and Frostfire, though she knew this was only for the training, thought the young she-cat looked quite ferocious.

The two she-cats circled each other, and both Frostfire and Ashflame were so engrossed in the fight that they could not bring themselves to call the session to an end.

Grayleaf leaped first, but Brightwing ducked, throwing her head back to strike Grayleaf's underbelly and send her flying backward. Grayleaf was on her paws soon enough, and ducked a hard blow from Brightwing, who raked a soft paw across her belly.

Though she wouldn't admit it, Brightwing was a really good fighter.

"Okay, that's enough!" Ashflame yowled, thrusting himself between the two she-cats. Brightwing immediately jumped off Grayleaf, dipping her head obediently to the gray tom. "Back to camp!" he ordered.

oO0Oo

"Frostfire, you're going whether you like it or not, okay? You've spent too long away from gatherings, and you've not spoken to many cats in a long time. And the day on the Thunderpath, any cat would think you stood there in the middle and tried to get hit! You're coming, and that's that." Ashflame flicked his tail in finality.

It had been over a moon since Frostfire had left the medicine den.

"Who died and made you leader?" Frostfire shot back. She didn't want to attend the gathering; she'd rather stay back and grieve, sort out her problems... everything.

"No one. I only want what's best for you!" Ashflame growled.

Frostfire's blue eyes blazed in cold fire. "Fine, I'll go," she spat. "I'll go. That's what you want, isn't it?" Without another word, she stalked away, padding over to speak to Sandshade. "Hello, Sandshade!"

"Hi!" Sandshade was obvious faking happiness, but she shot a worried glance between her and Ashflame.

For a heartbeat, Frostfire shared a moment of understanding with her, torn, for Sandshade it would be between friend and littermate, for Frostfire it would be between loyalty and fear.

"Are you going to the gathering?" the pale brown she-cat asked curiously. Clearly she hadn't heard the interaction, but she had seen Frostfire stomp away. Frostfire swallowed, still fuming. How _dare_ Ashflame say she was moping around camp so long, and not speaking to many cats? She had been, maybe be not as much as usual, but he knew that inside, she felt guilty.

"Yeah, I am," Frostfire growled. She paused. "Unfortunately."

"What, you don't want to go?" Sandshade asked, looking taken aback.

Frostfire's fur bristled. "No. But Ashflame somehow has become clan leader and is ordering me to."

"Ah," Sandshade mewed, staring worriedly at Ashflame again. "Well, I've got to go. Grayleaf wants me on patrol."

oO0Oo

Frostfire padded through the trees, alone. She reflected on what Ashflame had said, his words still ringing in her mind. _"I only want what's best for you!"_

Maybe she had been too harsh. No. She shook the thought off. She hadn't really noticed that she hadn't been talking to many cats, but she was spending more time distracted, thinking about her future actions when she could have been chatting with other warriors or going out on patrol.

Ashflame had no right.

He couldn't order her to go to the gathering, and even if he supposedly wanted what was best for her, he clearly wasn't showing it.

Frostfire's thoughts wandered. _Whatever Nightclaw does, he'll harm the clan. If I tell, and even supposing Brackenstar believes me, he'll return with a vengeance. If I don't, he'll take over the clan anyway._

Suddenly, the bushes rustled, and Whitefoot, one of the newest warriors, exploded out. _What's he doing here? He should be with Grayleaf and Sandshade..._ The black, white-pawed tom couldn't stop in time. He charged directly into Frostfire, sending her sprawling as he skidded to a halt. "Come quickly!" he panted.

"What is it?" Frostfire snapped; this would be the first time she had spoken to the warrior in moons, she realized. Maybe Ashflame could be right after all. _I know he cares... I guess he was just worried._

"River...Clan... attacking... patrol... outnumbered," Whitefoot gasped, his flanks heaving. Before he had even finished speaking, Frostfire sprinted past him, pushing her way through the thick undergrowth toward clearer ground, near RiverClan territory.

 _I may not be able to stop Nightclaw in time, StarClan, but I can be a good warrior in this way!_


	15. Part 1 - Chapter 15

Frostfire leaped stood motionlessly at the top of the slope, looking down at the battle below her. It was clear that the ThunderClan cats were losing, and she saw the RiverClan warriors swiftly overpowering them. With a battle cry, she launched herself down onto the rock face, throwing herself onto the startled Willowbranch, who looked up at her yowl, but not in time to dodge her attack.

Sandshade, Grayleaf, and Aspenclaw were all that were left of the ThunderClan patrol, since Whitefoot had gone to fetch help. But there were at least four or five more RiverClan cats than there were ThunderClan cats.

 _Fox-hearts,_ Frostfire cursed silently. _They must have planned this invasion to take us by surprise._

Whirling around, Frostfire nimbly sidestepped Willowbranch's attack, then leaped, hitting the RiverClan tortoiseshell squarely in her chest and bowling her over. She kept her claws and teeth firmly embedded in her chest and neck fur, holding her still and scoring a deep gash down her flank. For a moment, all she could see was Nightclaw under her claws, and she scored her claws over her opponent's left eye, half-blinding her.

Suddenly, the haze cleared. It was Willowbranch she was pinning down, and the older warrior swiped at her face, making her duck in surprise. Still, she felt pain sear through her ear as blood dripped from the cut there.

Another cat was on her back, tearing tufts of fur. She was forced to loosen her grip on Willowbranch and roll over to face this new attacker. She let out a yowl of pain as teeth met her tail.

 _This is hopeless,_ she realized, raking her claws down the hefty tom's belly. _They'll make crowfood of us._

Surging upward, she threw the warrior off, sending him tumbling onto the rock beneath them. "Thank StarClan!" she gasped, as Mouseclaw burst out of the trees, flanked by Brightwing. The two cats were getting close, so she realized it wasn't surprising that they were hunting together. _At least we're evenly matched now._

Then, a cry of pain greeted her as she whirled around, back to face the battle scene. Sandshade struggled, pinned by two warriors, a long gash down her belly. She couldn't move or defend herself against the two cats, as she was heavily bleeding, and it was clear she was getting weaker.

Frostfire froze, and one of the cats looked up, meeting her gaze. "Do you surrender now?"

"No!" Frostfire retorted, throwing herself at him. As she grappled with the RiverClan cat, she saw to her despair that another cat had taken his place, leaving Sandshade to face two cats alone... _again._

"How about now?" a she-cat asked, tearing a sizable clump from Sandshade's ear. The pale brown tabby slumped to the side, her eyes closed, but Frostfire could see her chest rising and falling. _She'll be fine._

"Never!" she yowled.

The only reply was two cats leaping onto her, spitting and clawing. Frostfire struggled, recognizing one of her attackers as Wildwater. She flailed her paws, clawing any pelt that came near. She raked a flailing forepaw across Wildwater's cheek, sending her stumbling, while the other cat clawed at her muzzle. Frostfire closed her eyes as the larger cat fought with more well-aimed, stronger blows.

Suddenly, the weight was lifted, and did not return. Frostfire opened her eyes. The cat lay beside her, a deep gash in his throat, where Frostfire had placed her paw, accidentally of course. _Why won't he get up?_ she asked herself, though she had already recognized the scent of death on him.

Wildwater let out a yowl. "Murderer!"

Frostfire leaped to one side, dodging her attack. With a forepaw, she struck the side of Wildwater's face, sending her flying against another RiverClan cat. Leopardheart, who seemed to be leading the RiverClan patrol, took a look at something beyond her, then let out a yowl. "Retreat!"

Frostfire turned to see Ashflame, Rowansky, Whitefoot, and Blossomshade yowling furiously as they raced down to greet the RiverClan cats with hostility. "That's right!" Rowansky yowled; she was Whitefoot's brother, also a new warrior. "Don't come back!"

oO0Oo

Frostfire padded toward the tree-bridge, pausing as Brackenstar and Nightclaw paused in front. _Maybe I was just angry... I've got so much on my mind... Ashflame might have been right..._

Sighing, she padded swiftly, slowing as she reached Ashflame. "Ashflame?"

"No."

Frostfire widened her eyes. "Please-"

"No."

"Can I-"

"No."

Frostfire let out a hiss of frustration. "All right, then." She stuck her tail straight in the air and stalked away, pausing as she reached Whitefoot. "Good thing you found me when you did," she mewed to him. "Otherwise, they would have killed the entire patrol!"

Whitefoot purred, tilting his head to one side. "I just hope I wasn't too late for Sandshade." He and the pale brown tabby had been getting rather close over the past moon or so, so it made sense that he was worried for her. "I'd never forgive myself if I was."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Frostfire mewed, though she wasn't sure at all. Her uncertainty must have shown in her voice, for he shot her a worried glance.

Pawsteps sounded behind them, and, out of the corner of her eye, Frostfire saw Ashflame approaching her, his tail drooping. "Frostfire?" Instead of replying, Frostfire tried to hide her hurt by turning her head away. She heard a hurt gasp come from Ashflame, and he let out a long sigh. "Frostfire, listen to me." Frostfire turned, though her eyes glared and her unsheathed claws glinted in the moonlight.

"What is it?"

"I'm sorry. I... I shouldn't have yowled at you, and I shouldn't have forced you to come... I was just worried for you, that's all," the gray tom mewed, surprising her. Frostfire sheathed her claws.

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten so angry that time..." she mewed, trailing off because she knew that her mate knew what she was going to say. She turned slightly to see that Whitefoot had padded ahead. She looked into Ashflame's blue eyes. "Ashflame... I killed him."

"Killed who?" Briefly, Frostfire relayed the story of the battle earlier that day, and he listened sympathetically. "It's all right. You were just defending yourself, Frostfire."

"I doubt they'll understand that, though," Frostfire retorted grimly. Still, somewhere deep inside, she was glad to bury her white nose into Ashflame's thick gray fur. Looking up, she unsheathed her claws, creeping cautiously across the tree-bridge. She had never fallen into the lake, but she had heard stories of those who had, and she definitely didn't want to give it a try.

"Come on! Let's go!" Ashflame mewed, bounding onto the island as though this was his first gathering.

Frostfire followed more slowly. Her gaze shifted upward, running briefly over the stars ahead. Some were gleaming more brightly than others, and, though it wasn't too obvious, Frostfire could see a clean, starless line between two groups of stars.

"What's wrong?" Her mate padded up behind her, his blue eyes following her crystal gaze upward.

"Look." Frostfire's voice was pain-racked, and she pointed with her tail toward the separated stars. "StarClan are divided because of me. I can't take it any more, Ashflame, I just can't!" Her voice cracked, and her blue eyes filled with tears as she turned away abruptly.

Before the tears could begin to fall, ignoring Ashflame's startled yowl, Frostfire whirled around and fled from the gathering, her life at ThunderClan, and her destiny.


	16. Part 1 - Chapter 16

Frostfire didn't know how long she had been running. The light of the full moon persistently scorched her white fur as she ran. Thanks to her speed, she assured herself that she had left the gathering far behind her. _StarClan are mocking me,_ she realized bitterly. _They remind me at every chance that all this is my fault._ She shook her head, tears falling from her eyes, undistinguished against the steady drizzle.

 _Of course, it had to rain. And now, of all possible times._ Frostfire bounded toward a desolate, empty meadow that seemed to be filled with nothing but grass and bushes. _Reasonable shelter._

Frostfire shook her head to clear the rain from her eyes. Finally, she skidded to a halt. _Where am I?_ She had never been this far from ThunderClan before. Ashflame's final yowl to her still rung in her ears. "I'll catch up to you, Frostfire! You can't run forever!"

 _Does he really care that much?_ Frostfire thought. _I've only broken up StarClan and caused trouble._

She looked up. _StarClan?_ _Do they even watch over this place?_

The thought still in her mind, Frostfire curled up under a sodden bush, shivering. She covered herself as best as she could with the only dry grass she could find before drifting off to sleep.

Blackness crashed over her, and she awoke in a beautiful, starry land.

Well, it would have been beautiful if the ground had not been spraying blood, and the cats ahead were not fighting each other.

Frostfire crept closer. She wanted to shut her eyes, and not perceive this dreadful sight, but she couldn't bring herself to turn away.

Suddenly, a shadow fell over her, and she looked up, to see Moonflower, her yellow eyes gleaming, with a strange expression. "These cats are killing each other! They'll all die soon enough."

"They're already dead!" Frostfire hissed angrily, her expression mirroring Moonflower's.

Moonflower rolled her eyes. "Are they filling your heads with thistledown, now? ThunderClan always were strange."

"You were in ThunderClan, Moonflower!" Frostfire snapped, not tolerating the StarClan cat's words any longer. Her plumy tail lashed against the ground, drawing a cloud of dust behind her as she glared at the silver she-cat.

"Ah, yes, I was, I know. But... er... it seems that they've changed some things in the clans for the worse, you know."

Frostfire narrowed her eyes, suspicion arousing. "If I know Moonflower, she wouldn't say things like that."

"I was wondering when you would find out," a dry voice retorted, and Frostfire let out a gasp of shock as the figure that used to be Moonflower fell apart, and an unfamiliar tom took her place. His large size, hard features, sadistic smirk, and the scar across his face intimidated Frostfire, but she wouldn't admit it.

"Moonflower!" she cried out. She took a step toward the dark gray tom. "Where is she?"

"How would I know?" the tom snapped. "I'm not from around here." His broad smirk widened. "My name's Grayscar. I'm not from StarClan."

Suddenly, it hit Frostfire. The cruel appearance, as well as the startlingly dislikable air around Grayscar... it could only mean one thing. Frostfire shuddered. "You're... you're from the Dark Forest!" she gasped.

The tom nodded. "I am. I have come to warn you. Don't believe what Moonflower tells you. Nightclaw... well, it's not what you'd like to believe, but he's doing it for the good of the clan. He knows things that the rest of you don't."

"And hedgehogs fly," Frostfire finished grimly. "No, I'm not falling for that. Nightclaw is a murderer and worse." She paused. "And thank you for confirming that he trains with the Dark Forest." With that, she stalked away, leaving Grayscar to turn and pad helplessly across the border into a shadowy forest.

Soon enough, Frostfire spotted a familiar silver tabby shape padding through the trees, and caught up with Moonflower. The gentle look in her yellow eyes was gone. Instead, there was anger and urgency. "Are you happy now?"

"What? What do you mean?" Frostfire asked, narrowing her eyes.

"You haven't set things right yet!" Moonflower wailed. "Cats could _die,_ Frostfire - thankfully none yet - and you need to put a stop to this!"

"I-I'm sorry," Frostfire mewed softly, actually meaning it. "I must fix things at once."

"And one more thing..." Moonflower began.

"Yes?"

"You must go back to ThunderClan."

"What?" Frostfire gasped.

"Yes. The clans will be destroyed if you don't return. You're the only capable one to stop Nightclaw. And now, you can return with a clear heart." _No. Not with a clear heart, for I still don't know what to do about Nightclaw,_ Frostfire replied silently.

Frostfire sighed. "I will, Moonflower."

She padded toward the battle, watching as the StarClan cats fought amongst themselves, claws unsheathed. A lone tear fell from her eye and trailed down her cheek as she surveyed the unfortunate scene.

Frostfire knew that this was the right time.

She could feel it, in her heart, and her determination pushed back nervousness at having to speak to so many StarClan cats at once. She padded onto a large boulder, the golden light warming her pelt, comforting her, as she stepped forward.

Frostfire raised her tail and padded forward, her chest puffed out as she gazed at the cats below her.

"Stop!"


	17. Part 1 - Chapter 17

"Stop!"

Frostfire's heart raced as all the fighting cats turned around to face her. She flattened her bristling fur and dipped her head politely. A ginger tom, whom she recognized as Firestar, stepped forward. "Why are you here?"

"I've come to tell you," Frostfire mewed, her icily calm voice carrying to all of StarClan, "that you need to stop this. I will destroy Nightclaw and his power, but only when the time is right." Her voice showed more confidence than she really felt.

"I think she's right," a gray tom asserted, and Frostfire dipped her head gratefully for the support.

"Me too," another cat added.

Soon, the crowd of StarClan cats started murmuring amongst themselves. "And one more thing," Frostfire mewed, her cheeks warming as she caught Moonflower's admiring glance. "You all are StarClan cats, so stop fighting and start working together!" With that, she leaped down from the rock, and padded toward the silver tabby.

"Well done," Moonflower murmured softly.

"I couldn't have done it without you," Frostfire replied, a moment of compassion shared between the two she-cats before Moonflower broke away.

"You did well. You escaped the pull of the Dark Forest, though it wasn't strong at all. And you brought StarClan back together!" Moonflower paused. "You need to go back, Frostfire."

Frostfire figured she was faced with yet another problem. "How?"

Moonflower rested her muzzle on Frostfire's head. "When you wake up, you'll know where to go." With that, the pool of shimmering starlight enveloped around Frostfire, sucking her back to the waking world...

Frostfire shivered, her fur damp from the previous night's rain. Fortunately, the sun shone brightly above her, illuminating the area with a soft glow. She stood up. _Where am I?_ This was not the place she slept in the previous night. She was in some sort of closed den, and it was some other light, not the sun, that shone above her.

Two black tomcats stood by her, watching her as she woke.

"Er... hello?" Frostfire mewed nervously. The first tom's dark red eyes flashed, and with no worded response, he leaped at her. "What in the name of StarClan?" Frostfire gasped, fending off his attack, but the tom easily overpowered her, pinning her down.

Then the second tom spoke. "You're on our land."

Frostfire struggled under the first cat. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to..." She trailed off as the red-eyed tom dug his claws into her throat.

"You do know what we do to tresspassers, don't you?" the second tom, a blue-eyed tom, asked, stepping closer, unsheathing his claws. Frostfire struggled, landing a blow on the first tom's underbelly. To her dismay, he didn't even flinch as he lifted his paw, claws flashing.

Suddenly, something shoved her out from under the red-eyed tom, and Frostfire jumped to her paws. It was a she-cat who pushed her, a small, muscular tortoiseshell she-cat with flashing green eyes. As Frostfire watched in amazement, she leaped at the red-eyed tom, claws unsheathed. Blood dripped from the cut in her throat to her white chest.

The blue-eyed tom leaped at her, but she dodged to one side, feeling somehow with renewed energy. She raked her claws across his underbelly, then clawed his ear before knocking him to the ground.

The tortoiseshell cast a glance toward her. "Run!"

"But what about you?" Frostfire protested, unwilling to leave the cat who had just saved her life.

"I'll be fine. Just go!"

Frostfire shot another concerned glance toward her before running toward the meadow, her tail streaming out behind her. She skidded to a stop once she reached a meadow of tall grass, then collapsed to the ground, blood streaming from her throat. She paused, waiting for the tortoiseshell to come to her.

Eventually, she glimpsed the tortoiseshell she-cat running toward her, her jaws carrying cobwebs. Her eyes widened. "Thank you!" Frostfire gasped, as she stopped.

"Don't mention it," the cat mewed, patting cobwebs in place on her neck.

"I wish I could repay you somehow," Frostfire mewed thoughtfully, standing up as she finished.

The cat shrugged. "My name's Dawn."

"My name is Frostfire," she replied. "And thank you."

Dawn's green eyes widened. "You're one of those clan cats!" she mewed excitedly, purring. "Do you know a cat called Mistpaw?" Frostfire's blue eyes glazed over in sadness for the dead apprentice and anger at Nightclaw for killing her.

"I did," Frostfire whispered. "She died."

Dawn let out a wail. "That's terrible!"

"How do you even know her?" Frostfire asked curiously.

"I met her when she was younger, and she was looking for something when she strayed out of her territory," Dawn replied. "Do you remember?"

Frostfire was only a kit when Mistpaw had vanished, and reappeared a quarter moon later. She nodded to Dawn, whose voice softened. "But... there is a way you can repay me, Frostfire."

"There is?"

"Could you take me to your clan?" Dawn asked pleadingly. "I know that Mistpaw would want me to join."

Frostfire's tail drooped. "No, I can't. Brackenstar - he's my clan leader - would claw my ears off!"

Dawn shook her head. "Please!"

"Well... I suppose I owe you for saving my life," Frostfire murmured. "I'll take you." She frowned. "Who were those cats anyway?"

Dawn let out a snarl. "The one who was pinning you down is Killer, and the other one is Jett." She paused. "Most dislikable creatures, you know. As you already saw." Frostfire nodded, sighing, and the two started homeward.


	18. Part 1 - Chapter 18

Frostfire sighed in relief as she opened her jaws to taste the fresh, sweet scent of ThunderClan, and she let out an uncontrollable purr. "We're here," she mewed as much to herself as to Dawn. "Welcome to ThunderClan."

 _You were right, Moonflower. You guided me home._

But the momentary relief was replaced by anxiety. What about Nightclaw? He, for one, would definitely use this against her. "What are you going to do now?" Dawn asked, sounding nervous that she was bout to join the clan.

"We need to go back to camp," Frostfire mewed firmly, padding through the trees.

"Stop! Who's there?" a low growl hissed. Frostfire recognized that voice as Whitefoot, who had been Nightclaw's apprentice earlier. "I thought I smelled someone."

"So do I," Brightwing hissed.

Dawn instinctively ducked behind a bush. "Shh," Frostfire whispered, not knowing why she was unwilling to show herself to the ThunderClan patrol. "Let's go." She padded around a thorn thicket and guided her friend around the woodland, until the camp came into view.

"That's the camp," she murmured. "Brackenstar's probably inside his den."

"Is he..." Dawn trailed off, but Frostfire could guess what she was about to say.

"He's a reasonable cat," Frostfire mewed. "The only thing is that he favors his deputy, Nightclaw, over any other clan cat." With that, she padded through the thorn tunnel. She smirked to herself as she saw Ashflame, turned away from her, his tail drooping, head low.

Quietly, so she wouldn't attract attention, Frostfire led Dawn toward the leader's den.

Brackenstar sat inside, curled up in his nest. At first, Frostfire took a step back, for it looked as though he was asleep. But he whipped his head upward, his amber eyes opening quickly. "Frostfire? Who's this?"

"This was a cat... who helped me get back to the clan. Her name is Dawn, and she wants to join ThunderClan," Frostfire mewed.

Brackenstar nodded. "Where were you, Frostfire?"

"I was... going for a walk during the gathering... and I lost my way." Only the last part was really true, but Frostfire knew that this was one thing that she had to keep secret. Brackenstar narrowed his eyes but nodded all the same.

"Very well. Dawn and I will discuss this together." His voice was raspy. Frostfire dipped her head and padded out of the den.

She twitched her whiskers as she saw Ashflame, and an idea popped into her mind. She dropped into a crouch and crept toward him. _This is one prey I can't miss._ She stalked closer, falling under the shade of the birch where he stood, then pounced.

Ashflame let out a startled yowl, then rolled over, making Frostfire burst into purrs.

"Frostfire!" His voice was an excited yowl. "You came back!"

His words attracted some cats out of the warriors' den: Nightclaw coldly dipped his head to her, looking disappointed; Rowansky and Blossomshade let out friendly purrs, while Sandshade burst out of the medicine den, her green eyes bright. "Frostfire!"

"Sandshade!" Poppylight bounded over to Sandshade, then guided her back into the medicine den.

"I'm glad you came back," Ashflame mewed. "I always knew you would." Frostfire simply purred and buried her nose into his thick light gray pelt, and his tail curled protectively around her white body as she pressed against him.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," she whispered softly, enjoying the feel of his soft fur against hers.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" Frostfire and Ashflame whipped their heads up to see that Brackenstar stood on the Highledge, calling the clan together. Cats clustered at the base of the large rock, looking upward, and Frostfire and Ashflame joined them, standing on the edge.

"What does he want?" Ashflame whispered.

Frostfire's blue gaze twinkled mysteriously. "You'll see."

"As most of you know, Frostfire has returned," Brackenstar mewed, meeting Frostfire's crystal blue gaze. Murmurs spread through the crowd of watching cats. "But what you don't know is that she brought with her a loner that wishes to join our clan."

One or two yowls of support came from beside Frostfire.

"I have agreed to this request, as leaf-bare is coming and we need more cats. Besides, we have no apprentices at the moment." He paused, staring down at the clan. "Dawn, step forward." Frostfire met Dawn's brilliant green gaze with her own encouraging blue one. "From this moment onward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Echopaw." He turned to the cats that stood below him.

"Who will mentor Echopaw?" he asked, addressing the cats.

Frostfire looked around helplessly, but no cat volunteered to mentor the former loner. Brackenstar opened his jaws to speak. "If no one-" Frostfire cut him off, stepping forward.

"I will mentor Echopaw!" she volunteered.

Brackenstar dipped his head. "Very well. Echopaw, your mentor will be Frostfire."

Frostfire purred in pride as Echopaw padded toward her. "Touch noses to me," she whispered. Echopaw obeyed, and the clan around them began to cheer. Ashflame edged closer to Frostfire, his eyes gleaming teasingly.

"I still can't believe you got an apprentice before me!" Frostfire purred, knowing that he was only teasing.

She joined in, cheering for her apprentice, and the cat who saved her life.

"Echopaw! Echopaw!"


	19. Part 1 - Chapter 19

Four moons had passed, and Frostfire noticed that her apprentice was progressing well. She and Echopaw were near the camp, hunting, and she watched carefully as Echopaw stalked toward a thrush, that was pecking at something on the ground. _Pounce!_ she willed her silently, but Echopaw took her time. She crept a little closer, then pounced, catching it triumphantly before the bird could take flight.

"Well done!" she mewed, purring. "Let's bury that."

A loud yowl from inside the camp was the only reply.

"On second thoughts," she mewed. "It seems something's going on at camp, so let's go and see. Take that with you." Echopaw dipped her head, then picked up the dead bird within her teeth. Echopaw was coping well, she realized. Better than any other loner would. Her body structure was almost like that of a pure ThunderClan cat.

The two she-cats padded through the thorn tunnel,, and stopped short. Nightclaw and Ambershine stood in the center of the clearing, surrounded by almost all of the clan. Sandshade bounded toward them, looking worried.

"What's going on?" Echopaw asked, her voice muffled by the thrush.

"Two things: first, I'm expecting kits, and second, Nightclaw and Ambershine are arguing. Oh, and third, Brackenstar has greencough." Frostfire's expression went from pleased to horrified.

"Congratulations!" Frostfire purred, while Echopaw pushed her way toward the fresh-kill pile. "Why are they arguing?"

"Same as usual. About who should be deputy," Sandshade mewed. She lowered her voice. "Only, they're on the brink of battle. They each have about the same number of supporters, and since there's no Brackenstar to stop the battle - I mean, he's too weak to do anything - they're probably going to start a fight."

"No!" Frostfire gasped.

"Yes," Sandshade confirmed grimly. "Look."

Ambershine and Nightclaw had always been bitter rivals, and Frostfire would have thought Ambershine would make the better deputy of the two. Frostfire watched as Nightclaw took a step forward, thrusting his muzzle into Ambershine's face. "If you want a battle, you can have one, Ambershine. We both have our own warriors, and they will fight if we want them to."

"You're too young to be deputy," Ambershine hissed. "You don't have enough experience."

"You weren't chosen by Brackenstar, were you?" Nightclaw retorted. Cats on both sides slid out their claws. Without a reply, Ambershine let out a fearsome screech and hurled herself at Nightclaw. Frostfire shivered. No, this could not end well.

"Are you going to fight?" a voice asked, and Frostfire turned to see Cinderblaze. Frostfire shook her head. "Then could you take care of Leafkit for me?"

Frostfire stared at her former mentor in disbelief. Leafkit was the only kit in the nursery, the daughter of Cinderblaze. "You're going to fight? With a kit? What if you don't come back?" Cinderblaze nodded.

"I'm supporting Ambershine," Cinderblaze mewed. "I believe that Brackenstar just favors Nightclaw over any other cat." With that, she whirled around and lashed out at the startled Tawnywhisker, who slashed his claws across her throat. Frostfire gasped in horror as Cinderblaze fell to the ground, her chest no longer heaving.

That made sense. Tawnywhisker was one of Nightclaw's huge supporters, almost another one of him. Frostfire suspected he knew about the way Nightclaw had killed Mistpaw and Yellowgaze.

Burying her nose into Cinderblaze's cold fur, Frostfire raked her claws over Tawnywhisker's underbelly before stalking away.

Sighing hopelessly, Frostfire padded over to the nursery. Sandshade crouched in a nest, while Leafkit, a cream-and-brown tabby she-cat, blinked her amber eyes hopefully.

 _She looks just like her father,_ Frostfire realized, thinking about Lionstrike. "Hi, Leafkit!"

"Frostfire!" The young she-cat sprang onto the white warrior, and Frostfire pushed her gently off. "Tomorrow's my apprentice ceremony!"

"I'm sure you'll do fine," Frostfire murmured, resting her muzzle on Leafkit's head.

"Where's Cinderblaze?"

Frostfire jolted sharply, then whirled around to face her. "What?"

"I said, where's Cinderblaze?" Leafkit mewed slowly, looking puzzled as she stared at Frostfire.

Frostfire flinched, then stroked her tail over Leafkit's back. "Cinderblaze... she won't be coming back... ever. But she hasn't left you. She'll be in your heart, letting your heart guide you."

"What do you mean?"

Frostfire sighed, sharing the sadness with Leafkit over her former mentor. "Cinderblaze is dead, Leafkit. I'm sorry."

Leafkit drew away from her, her eyes blazing angrily. "She's dead? Just like that?"

"Yes. But she's watching over you from StarClan."

"I don't care! I want my mother!"

"She's always with you, Leafkit." Frostfire paused. "Even if you can't see her." With that, she padded out of the nursery, coming face to face with Ashflame, whose unsheathed claws gleamed in the sunlight. Frostfire lashed her tail. "Don't tell me you're fighting as well!"

"No, I'm not." Ashflame licked his chest. "You startled me, that's all."

"This is terrible," Frostfire mewed. "Cinderblaze is dead. I think Blueshadow is, too."

"Look!" Ashflame pointed with his tail at Nightclaw and Ambershine, who circled each other warily. From where she stood, Frostfire couldn't pick up what they were saying, but she was almost positive it wasn't very good. Suddenly, Nightclaw lashed out, and Ambershine crumpled to the ground, blood welling from her throat.

 _"No!"_


	20. Part 1 - Chapter 20

The battle didn't stop at once, however. Frostfire let out a wail as she saw Ambershine's limp body coated with her blood. Nightclaw opened his jaws in a triumphant yowl. "Cinderblaze!" she gasped, hurrying over to her former mentor, whose gray fur was now spiky with drying blood.

With a cry, she buried her nose into her fur, letting her tears fall onto Cinderblaze's fur.

"This is wrong," Ashflame muttered, his tail lashing. "Why start a battle over something like this?"

Frostfire stood up and dipped her head. "Yes," she mewed evenly, raising her head. "This has gone too far. And that's why they need to _stop!"_ She raised her voice on the last word, her voice carrying clearly to the entire cluster of fighting cats. The effect was immediate. Cats broke apart, then whirled around to face her. Nightclaw let out a long hiss as he glared at her.

"What do you want?" he growled.

"I want this battle to stop. It's pointless. Cats have already died because of this, and we need our clan to be strong!" Frostfire mewed, her tail twitching.

oO0Oo

Frostfire shivered. "Let's get back to camp. It's past sunset."

Echopaw didn't move. "You did well back there, Frostfire."

"Back where?"

"Stopping the battle. I may not be a clan cat by birth, but I am one at heart. I'm glad you stopped the battle, you know."

Frostfire started. She wasn't used to being praised by her own apprentice. "Well... er, thanks." _But I wish it was that easy,_ she thought bitterly. _There's so much you don't know about the battle, Echopaw. There's so much about your own deputy, too._

As Frostfire padded into the camp, the clearing was in a commotion. "What's going on?" she asked the nearest cat, which happened to be Sandshade.

"Haven't you heard? Leafkit's becoming an apprentice!"

"Oh." Frostfire sighed and padded over to the Highledge, letting out a purr as she greeted Ashflame with a slight dip of her head. Her mate responded by twining his tail with hers and licking the top of her white head.

"Leafkit has reached the age of six moons and is ready to become an apprentice," Brackenstar announced. "Leafkit, from this moment onward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Leafpaw. Ashflame, you are ready to take on your first apprentice. Pass on your knowledge and skill to Leafpaw."

Ashflame looked surprised as he stepped forward from beside the shocked Frostfire. "Well done!" she murmured. He flicked his tail to let her know that he had heard, then stepped forward to touch noses to Leafpaw; he looked just as excited as his apprentice.

Frostfire cheered loudest of all for the young she-cat as well as her mentor.

"Leafpaw! Leafpaw!"

oO0Oo

"Do you want to go hunting with me and Leafpaw?" Ashflame asked; it had been a moon since Leafpaw had become his apprentice. "You can bring Echopaw, too." Frostfire shook her head, turning to Echopaw, who scuffled her paws on the ground, coating her tortoiseshell fur with dust.

"Sorry, I need to do Echopaw's final assessment - the fighting and running part." Frostfire had kept her mentor's way of making running a part of an apprentice's assessment, as well as hunting and fighting.

"Oh, okay." Ashflame looked a little disappointed, but he and Leafpaw disappeared into the forest.

Frostfire turned to Echopaw. "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Then run from here to the camp. It's not too far, you know." Frostfire shivered. "When I was a new apprentice, my mentor made me run from here to the lake!" She paused, and Echopaw nodded, dropping into a crouch. "Ready... set..." She threw her head back and let out a yowl to the skies.

Then, she took off, pulling easily ahead of the smaller cat as she skidded to a halt at the entrance tunnel. She watched as her apprentice narrowed her eyes in determination, her gaze fixed on the entrance tunnel. Heartbeats later, she was sprawling on the forest floor. Frostfire rolled her eyes.

Echopaw had stumbled over a root.

"Echopaw! Are you all right?"

Echopaw didn't answer, for she was already racing toward the entrance tunnel again. She stopped in front of Frostfire, panting. "I failed, didn't I?"

"Nonsense!" Frostfire mewed, purring. "You did quite well. I like your determination. I think Brackenstar should honor you for that, actually."

"Then what are we doing next?"

"The fighting part."

Echopaw stared at her in disbelief. "But how about the tree-climbing?"

"I think I'll let you by on that one. You don't have to do it, because you did the running," Frostfire mewed hesitantly. In truth, she was just tired. She wanted time to think about future action on Nightclaw and ThunderClan. "Now, let's get on with the fighting!"

"All right. When should we start?"

Frostfire purred, doing the same thing her mentor did on her first time. She leapt at her apprentice without warning. "Now!"

oO0Oo

"Frostfire, is your apprentice ready?"

Frostfire nodded, her eyes shining. "She is."

"Echopaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

Echopaw stepped forward as she dipped her head. "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Echopaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Echoshine. StarClan honors your courage and strength, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Frostfire watched as Echoshine licked Brackenstar's shoulder, and he in turn rested his muzzle on her head.

"Echoshine! Echoshine!"

Frostfire let out a purr as Ashflame rubbed against her, his tail curling around her. Suddenly, seemingly unheard by everyone else, a yowl rang through the forest. Frostfire whirled around to face Ashflame. "Did you hear that?"

Ashflame stared. "No."

"Mouse-dung!" Frostfire sprinted in the direction of RiverClan territory, her heart racing as she ran. _Oh, StarClan, I can't let Nightclaw strike again!_ The yowl had sounded distinctly like one of pain, Frostfire recalled. It was the very clearing where Frostfire had first witnessed StarClan's fighting. Frostfire didn't even gasp at what she saw. It was only too obvious.

Only, the victim was a cat that she was completely loyal to.

Brackenstar lay limp at Nightclaw's bloody paws.


	21. Part 1 - Chapter 21

Frostfire choked on some thick gray fur as she tried to scream. Ashflame dragged her away, his tail covering her jaws. Frostfire flailed as he thrust her into the lake, then pulled her spluttering form out quickly. "What in the name of StarClan?" she snapped, coughing out water.

"Shh!" Ashflame warned. "Let's get out of here. Then we can talk." Before Frostfire had a chance to respond, Ashflame turned and bounded away. Frostfire took one look back at the clearing and raced after him. She paused once Ashflame stopped.

"Why did you bring me to the _ShadowClan_ border?" she complained, but she didn't really mind; she just wanted something to complain about.

"Why did you bring me to the _ThunderClan_ border?" an overly high-pitched imitation came from the ShadowClan side. Darkclaw, his apprentice Smokepaw, and Whiteleaf padded over to the border, and Frostfire was pretty sure that it was Smokepaw who had spoken. She whirled around, stalking dangerously close to the border and growling in the gray-black tom's face.

"Say that again, you load of fox-dung!" she spat.

All her anger at Nightclaw spilled out.

Somewhere behind her, she felt Ashflame's teeth in her tail, trying to pull her back. "Frostfire! Stop!"

But of course she didn't. Smokepaw let out a falsely sweet purr. "All right. Why did you-" Frostfire cut him off by leaping straight for his throat. The apprentice let out a scream as her claws scored a gash down his neck, but he kicked out. Frostfire didn't even budge. _This is too easy._ The tom's thick gray fur became black, and his blue eyes turned to the green eyes of Nightclaw.

"You!" she spat, dragging her claws down his flanks. "You murderer! Traitor!"

A new force dragged her off the tom, and Frostfire blinked to see Ashflame standing over her. "Are you all right? Do you know this tom?" Ashflame released her to let her stand up, then pointed with his tail toward Smokepaw, who lay on the grass, blood bubbling at his throat.

"What? No." Frostfire looked away to hide her horror.

Across from her, Darkclaw looked as though she had turned into a monster that somehow left the Thunderpath, and Whiteleaf's tail was lashing, though even she looked terrified. "Then why did you call him a... murderer?"

Whiteleaf let out a hiss. "I believe you attacked an innocent apprentice, Frostfire. And that doesn't go unrepayed." She exchanged a glance with Darkclaw, then leaped at Frostfire. Frostfire jumped back, startled, but her claws still raked across her shoulder. Frostfire flung herself at Whiteleaf's neck, then jumped at her head, bowling her over.

Whiteleaf struggled beneath her, gasping for breath. "I thought he was another cat, okay?" Frostfire snapped. "It's... complicated."

Darkclaw stood up, then gazed at her, his amber eyes meeting her blue ones. "I believe you, actually. I don't know why."

"Well, I don't!" Whiteleaf snapped, but Frostfire dug her claws into her chest. "It may have been an accident, but what are you going to do about it?"

"Nothing!" Ashflame snapped, padding up to Frostfire's defense. "You already gave her a scar on her shoulder, and it's not like Smokepaw will die. I don't think his wounds are too bad, anyway!" He nudged Frostfire. "Let her go."

Once the ShadowClan cats had marked the border and left, Frostfire turned on Ashflame. "Yeah, that was a _wonderful_ place to talk!" she spat sarcastically.

Ashflame took a step back. "I don't know what's gotten you so worked up, to do that to an apprentice, but-"

"I though he was Nightclaw!"

"You... _what?"_ Ashflame stared as though she had gone mad. "That was a _gray apprentice_ with _blue_ eyes," he mewed slowly.

"I know! It was just a haze, okay?" Frostfire sheathed her claws. "Can we please drop it?"

Ashflame swiped playfully at her ear, and she ducked instinctively. "It's too late for you to do anything, isn't it?" he mewed. "Brackenstar's dead, and Nightclaw is the new leader." Frostfire dipped her head, then licked her chest in shame.

"I didn't know he would take such drastic action so fast," she muttered.

"The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know!" Frostfire snapped. "So his deputy will obviously be Tawnywhisker, who believes that all of Nightclaw's actions, even his murdering, treacherous ones, are for the best. And Tawnywhisker is almost as bad as Nightclaw; the only difference being that he may not have killed as many cats."

"That's the problem. And then ThunderClan will fall!"

oO0Oo

Frostfire dropped a sparrow and a small pigeon on the pitifully small fresh-kill pile. It was leaf-bare, and to make up for their long absence, she and Ashflame had gone hunting. She padded over to Ashflame. "I guess we know what's going to happen, then."

Sure enough, heartbeats later, Nightclaw and Tawnywhisker padded into camp, dragging Brackenstar's limp body between them. "Brackenstar is dead!"

The clan poured out of the different dens, into the clearing, while Nightclaw leaped onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" He didn't need to say anything. The clan was already there. "Brackenstar is dead, and he was killed by a passing rogue while he, Tawnywhisker, and I were hunting near the Twolegplace."

 _Yeah, right._

"I am now the new ThunderClan leader," he mewed, with a touch of pride. "And I will lead this clan to greatness. Also, it is time to appoint a deputy. I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of my warrior ancestors will hear and approve my choice. Tawnywhisker will be the new deputy of ThunderClan. Tawnywhisker, you have proven to be a loyal and strong warrior. I trust that you will support me in all my decisions."

Frostfire shivered as Tawnywhisker dipped his head. "I will."

Frostfire didn't join in as the clan cheered for the newly named deputy. "Tawnywhisker! Tawnywhisker!"


	22. Part 1 - Chapter 22

Frostfire tore off a clump of a mouse, chewing thoughtfully. Nightclaw had become Nightstar a few nights ago, and now her job would be even harder that before. Suddenly, a cry of pain rang out from the nursery, and Frostfire jumped to her paws. Had Nightstar struck again?

She finished the mouse in one gulp, twitching her whiskers to flick the last traces of mouse from her jaws. She skidded to a halt as Poppylight stood in front of the nursery, barring the path. "What's happening?" she asked, skidding to a halt.

"Sandshade is kitting!" the medicine cat mewed.

"Whitefoot, you can come in, now!" Snowblossom's yowl came from somewhere inside the den.

Poppylight rolled her eyes. "Or, at least, she _was."_

Frostfire purred in amusement and relief. She realized that she was being too anxious. Every whisper of the wind now sounded like Nightstar, every yowl like a victim of Nightstar, and every pawstep like Nightstar's stalking.

Whitefoot padded into the den, and heartbeats later, he let out a yowl of delight. He poked his head out of the den. "She gave birth to one tom!" he announced, to every cat nearby. Frostfire would have rolled her eyes, but it was probably just a fatherly instinct. She hoped Ashflame wouldn't do that if she ever had kits of her own. Not that she really planned to, anyway.

Frostfire padded inside. Sandshade was curled up in a nest, the only queen in the nursery. At her belly lay a russet-colored tom, who blinked once, revealing green eyes, and closed them again. "You name him," Whitefoot whispered, nudging his mate gently.

"Redkit." Sandshade's jaws opened in a yawn, and her green eyes closed as she fell asleep.

oO0Oo

Was it just her imagination, or was there actually someone whispering? Frostfire sat up in her nest, finding all the other warriors asleep. Only one nest was empty. Her eyes widened as she saw that Tawnywhisker wasn't in the warriors' den at all.

Two moons had passed, and Poppylight now hunted with StarClan. Thankfully, this wasn't Nightclaw's fault; she had developed greencough, and couldn't pull through, leaving Snowblossom as the sole medicine cat of ThunderClan. Frostfire slowly crept out of the den. An extremely small silvery curve showed as the moon, and the night sky was almost completely starless.

Frostfire padded toward Nightstar's den. Nightstar and Tawnywhisker spoke in hushed whispers. For what was probably the millionth time, Frostfire cursed her pure white pelt before sinking her claws into a birch and pulling her way to the top.

From here, she could pick up most of what they were saying.

Nightstar nodded to Tawnywhisker. "Yes. She knows too much... we need her to leave the clan."

"So you want me to take care of Redkit?"

"Yes... leave the body in the fresh-kill pile," Nightstar mewed, smirking. "And then, we can get rid of her!" Frostfire shivered as Tawnywhisker turned away. "Oh, and Tawnywhisker? Could you do some night hunting?"

Frostfire lowered her eyes. She didn't think they were talking about Sandshade or Snowblossom. _They_ weren't the ones who knew the truth about Mistpaw. _They're going to kill Redkit and blame it on me!_

 _Redkit's only two moons old!_

 _You can't do this!_

She shuddered, unable to believe what she had just heard.

 _No._

Frostfire jumped down after Nightstar vanished into his den. She crept back into her nest, shivering, unable to rest after what she'd heard.

Eventually, though, weariness overcame her.

And at midnight, a dying screech echoed through the night, one that no one could hear.

oO0Oo

Frostfire pricked her ears as she heard Sandshade's horror-struck wail. "Redkit's gone missing!" The two moon old kit had never been a very adventurous kit, so she could tell why Sandshade was worried. Frostfire exchanged a glance with Ashflame. She had already told her mate about what Nightstar and Tawnywhisker had said.

She dug her claws into the dirt and joined in the search with the rest of the clan, though she knew where she would find the body.

"I found her!" a voice yowled, and Frostfire turned to see Nightstar padding over to the fresh-kill pile.

Sandshade exploded from the nursery. "Thank you-" She cut herself off, her eyes widening in horror as she saw Redkit's torn, lifeless body. "No!" Frostfire's stomach clenched with pity for her friend as the young queen threw her head back and yowled.

"I know who killed him." Nightstar let out a low growl. "Frostfire."

"How do you know this?" Ashflame challenged, but the leader didn't reply.

Sandshade stared, wide-eyed, at Frostfire, then shook her head. "No, she couldn't have done it! She wouldn't do that!" Frostfire herself was panicking on the inside. Nightstar stalked over to her, his green eyes faking horror, disbelief, and anger.

"Frostfire, until we have proven that you are innocent, I exile you from ThunderClan because of your murder of a helpless kit. If we catch you in ThunderClan territory after sunset, we will kill you." Tawnywhisker seemed to be the only cat who agreed with Nightstar, for most of the clan were letting out indignant yowls.

Ashflame wrapped his tail around her. "You can't go! Everyone knows that you didn't do it!"

Still, Frostfire broke away from his grasp, and ignored his yowls.

Her fur bristling, she turned and faced the clan. "I would never do such a thing! Redkit's an innocent kit!" Most of the clan nodded, but Nightstar shook his head.

"If we have further evidence, then you are welcome back," he growled.

Frostfire's blue eyes flashed.

She turned, then broke into a run, and she bounded out of the clearing, out of ThunderClan, before tears could fall, her heart shattering.


	23. Part 1 - Chapter 23

Frostfire padded through unfamiliar territory, her heart thumping wildly. Her claws were still unsheathed. Nightstar didn't even provide a solid reason for why he would exile her first! She opened her jaws, tasting the air. _I'm near the Twolegplace!_

She ran, almost ramming into an unfamiliar tom. "Hey. My name's Ripple."

"Oh... hello." Frostfire inwardly admired the way he spoke. It was almost as if he didn't even notice that she was almost twice his size. She stared at his sleek, silver pelt, and the way he strode. It was definitely not one of a Twolegplace cat, but it was not at all similar to the way a clan cat would act.

"And you are...?"

Frostfire jumped. "Frostfire."

"You're a clan cat, aren't you?" Ripple asked, narrowing his eyes. Frostfire nodded. "Well, it's not me, but a lot of my friends don't welcome you around."

"Who said I was staying here?" Frostfire snapped, resisting the urge to claw his ears off.

Ripple looked taken aback. "No one, but in case you were... anyway, I know some cats you'd probably like to meet."

"Yeah, right."

"No, I really do." Ripple flicked his tail. "Want me to show you? It's not too far. It's only across the narrow gorge, and then not far after that." Frostfire's eyes widened, and her white fur fluffed up. Her claws sheathed and unsheathed as she stared at the cat.

"Across a _gorge?"_

"It's not a big jump. And anyway, weren't you clan cats supposed to be not afraid of anything?"

"Where did you hear that? It's not really true," Frostfire mewed, startled by his comment.

"Just a rumor." Ripple padded ahead of her, then turned his head to face her again. "You coming or not?" Frostfire hesitated. It didn't seem as though this tom meant any harm to her. But still, she barely knew him. Gritting her teeth, Frostfire padded toward him.

"I guess so."

"You won't regret it, I promise." Ripple's voice was teasing as he led her through a small field.

But Frostfire just shot him a glare. "Make sure I don't."

Ripple's silver fur glowed, catching the sunhigh sunlight on his sleek pelt. "All right, the gorge is right through here, and you have to jump, even if it's narrow, and try not to look down, because it's really deep, and-" Frostfire cut him off.

"I know! I'm not a helpless kit!" she spat, shouldering ahead of him. A hole in the grass was large enough for a cat to fit, so she padded inside, and all she saw was darkness. She stumbled over something sharp as she padded ahead. Suddenly, she paused. "Ripple?"

There was no answer.

"Ripple?"

"What?" Ripple's form knocked into her from behind, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm right here!"

The hole, Frostfire realized, was a long tunnel, surrounded by stone and dirt. The darkness soon vanished as her eyes adjusted to the blackness, and she crept through. A small speck of blue shone in the distance. Frostfire purred. She would be out in the open soon enough.

Frostfire stared up at the blue, sunlit sky, and she purred.

"Look out!" Ripple burst out of the tunnel, and she let out a yowl of surprise as he stumbled into her. "Here's the gorge." From Ripple's description, Frostfire was expecting something narrower, maybe only a deep crack in the ground.

But this was huge!

"Ripple! This is huge!" Frostfire couldn't keep the panic out of her voice. Ripple's ear twitched, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he crouched, muscles tensing. Frostfire watched as the silver tom launched himself across the gorge, the wind ruffling his fur.

"Come on!" he yowled, standing up and facing her. "It's not hard!"

Frostfire shut her eyes. She crept forward, her muscles quivering with readiness and excitement. And she jumped. Frostfire's tail lashed at the air as she realized she might have jumped short. But she was on the rock, scrabbling to get a grip. Ripple nosed her to her paws. Frostfire was still shivering. _I do not want to do that again._

"I'll take Frostfire from here," a soft voice mewed. Frostfire saw an elegant white she-cat with gray-brown flecks on her pelt step forward, amber eyes gentle. Ripple nodded, then waved his tail in farewell. Frostfire scrambled back from the she-cat, nervous.

However, when she spoke, her voice was bold. "How do you know my name?"

"Because the Starstream told Shimmer you would come." Her answer was simple, yet somehow powerful. She beckoned with her tail. "You are Frostfire, correct?" Frostfire dipped her head. "Come."

Frostfire followed her into a large clearing. Cats busied themselves around, while the amber-eyed she-cat padded over to the den. "Wait!" Frostfire mewed, her blue eyes meeting the she-cat's amber ones. Questions spilled out of her faster than the wind. "Why have you brought me here? Are you sure I'm the right cat?" She paused. "Who even _are_ you?"

The she-cat purred. "You are from ThunderClan, correct?"

Frostfire nodded.

"My name is Honeyflower, and I, too, was a former ThunderClan cat."


	24. Part 1 - Chapter 24

Frostfire gasped. "But who are you?"

"I was Nightkit's sister," she murmured. "We lost our mother at a young age, and my brother blamed me. He chased me away from the clan."

"Nightkit?" Frostfire asked, narrowing her eyes. Then, her voice shook. "You mean Nightstar?"

Honeyflower widened her eyes in horror. "He's leader now?" Her voice failed, and she repeated the question in disbelief. "How have StarClan allowed that?" She turned and flicked her tail toward the other cats in the clearing. "These are the cats who have suffered because of an evil," she muttered softly. "Come; you need to meet Shimmer."

Frostfire followed her into a den, where a golden-furred she-cat stood. "Thank you, Honeyflower."

Her voice was deep and rich, still warm, and somehow attracted Frostfire's attention. Honeyflower dipped her head and slipped out of the den, leaving Frostfire and this she-cat alone in the den. "Are you Frostfire?"

"I am."

"Has Nightstar sent you away?"

The question caught Frostfire off guard. "H-how did you know?"

Shimmer purred. "StarClan have more knowledge than we can imagine, Frostfire. Our Starstream is the same as your Moonpool. At least, it's just another place where we meet our warrior ancestors."

"How did you leave the clan?" she ventured. "I mean, who forced you away?"

Shimmer jerked her head sharply. "What?"

"Who exiled you? Honeyflower told me that the cats here are those who have fallen from some sort of evil."

Shimmer stared, her blue eyes wide. Her voice was only a whisper when she spoke. "Out of all the cats who have ever been here, you are the first and only one who has ever asked me that, Frostfire."

"Tawnypaw. He framed me for murdering his mentor." Shimmer's voice was bitter. _Really? All this time I thought he was just Nightstar's supporter, but it seems he's much, much worse than that..._

"He's Tawnywhisker, and he's the clan deputy now," Frostfire mewed.

Shimmer whirled around to face her, blue eyes blazing furiously, her fur bristling, tail lashing, claws unsheathed. Frostfire gasped in shock as Shimmer leaped onto her and pinned her down, though she didn't claw or bite her. "What did you say?" Her blue eyes burned into Frostfire's, almost drawing the truth out of her.

"I said... he's Tawnywhisker, and the deputy," Frostfire repeated, struggling free. The leader of this place never seemed to strike her as such a strong she-cat. Panting, she sheathed her claws.

"That can't be!" Shimmer let out a cry of shock.

"If Nightstar's the leader, he has to be the deputy," Frostfire muttered. Then, she faced Shimmer. "But... I just don't understand! StarClan told me that _I'm_ the one who should stop him!"

Shimmer's blue eyes lit up with a fierce joy. "You!" she gasped, padding closer.

"Me?"

"You're the one who is chosen to rid the clans of him!"

Frostfire dipped her head, suddenly embarrassed. She gave her white chest fur a few rapid licks. "Yeah, I am."

When Shimmer looked at her again, it was in awe. Her voice was no more than a whisper as she gazed at Frostfire's sleek white pelt and crystal blue eyes, that shone like two twin stars. "Thank you." She paused. "And welcome to the clan of the Broken."

oO0Oo

Frostfire let out a long sigh. She shouldn't be here. She'd let herself fall to Nightstar's cold heart, when he should have been the one who fell. She'd failed StarClan. She'd failed herself. She'd failed everyone.

Tears stained her cheek.

She couldn't have fallen. Not yet. Not to Nightstar, of all cats!

Frostfire stared down, her tail down, her heart down. She choked on tears as she tried to take a step forward. But she couldn't step _to_ anywhere. She only came _from_ somewhere, and she couldn't go back. She stared into the water of a small stream. A ragged white she-cat with pain-wracked crystal blue eyes stared back. The sparkle in her eyes was gone, and she now looked gaunt and hopeless.

Only one thing could bring the old Frostfire back.

And that was fulfilling her destiny.

Accomplishing the impossible.

She missed ThunderClan with all her heart. Every gray-furred cat in the clan of the Broken, as it was called, looked like Ashflame, every tortoiseshell was Echoshine, and she awoke every morning murmuring, "Where am I?"

"Why, StarClan?" she whispered. "Why did you give me this destiny? I failed everyone. I can't fulfill it."

Suddenly, Moonflower's words rang in the back of her mind. _"Destiny is a path laid out for you at birth. A power, even greater than StarClan, lays it out for you. StarClan's job is to encourage you to fulfill it, but destiny does not have to be followed. Usually, however, cats go to extraordinary measures to fulfill their destiny."_

Frostfire repeated the words silently in her mind.

Then again.

Then again.

Then again.

The words left some sort of impact in her head, and Frostfire took a pace forward. It made sense, now. Destiny really was one-of-a-kind. If no one else could fulfill her destiny, then she would have to, herself, no matter what it took.

Throwing her head back, she let out a wordless yowl that rang as far as she knew.


	25. Part 1 - Chapter 25

Frostfire padded, confused, into Shimmer's den. The golden she-cat jumped to her paws as soon as she saw Frostfire enter. Frostfire's crystal blue eyes narrowed, running once again over Shimmer's sleek fur. "You wanted to see me, Shimmer?"

It had been a moon since Frostfire had first joined the clan of the Broken, and she knew that she would never enjoy it as much as she would ThunderClan.

"Yes, Frostfire." Shimmer dipped her head as she spoke.

Frostfire dropped the vole she was carrying at Shimmer's paws. "Here; you need to eat, first." Shimmer dipped her head gratefully and swallowed the vole in famished gulps. Then, she looked up, smiling, her blue eyes seeming to glow in appreciation.

"You're a very loyal warrior, Frostfire." She paused. "Actually, I wanted to see you, because... well, I wanted you to come with me."

"Where?"

"To the Starstream." At Frostfire's appalled gaze, she quickly added, "You need to go there. It's for the best. Really."

Frostfire's blue eyes glimmered with hope. "Let me get this straight. You want _me_ to come with _you_ to the Starstream, which is where usually, only medicine cats and leaders go?" She emphasized her remark with a slight shake of her white head and a twitch of her tail.

"Yes."

To her credit, Shimmer's voice didn't shake with hesitation. Frostfire realized that leaders probably had to conceal their emotions only too well, and be strong for the clan's sake. Frostfire dipped her head. "I will come."

oO0Oo

"Quick, it's this way." Shimmer's pawsteps sounded ahead of her, and Frostfire followed the Broken clan leader down a small slope. She stopped short in amazement once she reached the bottom. A gentle stream coursed ahead of her, caught in the starlight. It seemed to shine of all the colors Frostfire had ever seen, and it shone, illuminating the area around them. "Welcome to the Starstream."

There was only one thing that could outshine the Starstream in any way, and that was the pool of starlight in StarClan.

Frostfire padded closer, awed at the wondrous sight. She stared at inside, and a beautiful, snow-white she-cat stared back at her. Beautiful, except that her expression was hopeless, pleading, and desperate, with only a very faint glimmer of hope.

Frostfire's claw dabbed at the water, and the image shattered, replaced by ripples.

"What do I do?" Frostfire asked her, not turning her head away from the Starstream.

Shimmer padded closer to the water, then crouched down. "Lick up a few drops, and then you'll fall asleep. No doubt you'll dream about StarClan." She bent over the water, ready to lap at it. "Good luck, Frostfire." Frostfire dipped her head, watching as her new leader dabbed her tongue at the silvery water, then sank gracefully to the ground, her eyes already closed.

Frostfire breathed in, slowly, then bent over the water, and slowly lapped at it. Immediately, the Starstream vanished from her sight, and Frostfire was left staring at her surroundings, a dark, shadowy forest. She let out a hiss as she spotted Nightstar and Tawnywhisker, standing beside Grayscar and a red-brown she-cat she didn't quite recognize.

 _I'm in the Dark Forest!_ Frostfire turned to the side, ready to pad back to StarClan. Only then did she realize that all the directions she could go looked eerily identical, so there was no way she could go back.

 _I might as well watch what they're saying._ Frostfire dropped into a crouch underneath a large bush, watching the four cats. Tawnywhisker shook out his tawny-colored fur, his whiskers twitching. "I'm glad we've finally gotten rid of theat spying nuisance. A moon or two without her has been so peaceful."

"It certainly has," Nightstar agreed calmly. "I've made the clan so much stronger without her."

Frostfire unsheathed her claws.

She wondered whether _so much stronger_ meant _attacking other clans for no reason._

"Can we get back to training, now?" the she-cat snapped, her amber eyes flashing as her black fur bristled.

"The very question _I_ was about to ask, Redstare," Grayscar mewed calmly. Without warning, he leapt at Nightstar, twisting in midair to rake at his belly. _Cinderblaze never taught me that,_ she realized in surprise. _I might actually be able to learn something here._

"Get that idea out of your mind," a voice snapped from behind her. A yellow-gray she-cat stood behind her, her yellow eyes flashing, amber eyes gleaming. However, this was a StarClan cat, whom Frostfire felt she had somehow seen before. "And get back to our side of the border."

"Sorry," Frostfire muttered. Under her breath, she added, "But if I'm supposed to destroy Nightstar, then I might as well learn all his moves."

"What was that?" the yellow-gray she-cat snapped.

"Nothing. What's your name?" Frostfire mewed.

"Yellowfang." Yellowfang snorted and padded ahead. Frostfire breathed out in relief. The shimmering lights of StarClan glowed ahead of her. Flicking her tail, Yellowfang padded across the heavily-marked border, settling down on StarClan grass, her tail curled neatly around her paws. "What were you doing in _Dark Forest_ territory?" Yellowfang spat the word out as though she were talking about fox-dung.

"I... I don't really know. I just... sort of woke up there." Frostfire shrugged.

"Moonflower, explain to her what a mouse-brained idea that was!" Frostfire turned to see Moonflower pad over to her and Yellowfang.

"I don't think she _meant_ to go there, though." Moonflower sat beside Yellowfang.

Frostfire settled across from them. "Then what am I supposed to _do?_ Nightstar has grown stronger, and I've failed my destiny!" Her voice rose to a wail by the time she had finished.

"Do you want Nightstar to be destroyed?" Moonflower asked gently.

"Of course I do!"

Moonflower smiled. "Then you know just what to do."


	26. Part 1 - Chapter 26

"Frostfire!" a paw jabbed Frostfire in the ribs, and her eyes flew open to see Shimmer standing anxiously over her. "Are you all right? You were thrashing around and muttering in your sleep!" Frostfire nodded, getting shakily to her paws. She met her leader's worried glance with an urgent blue fire. The strength had returned to her appearance, and the hope in her eyes had grown stronger, creating a small shine.

"Shimmer, I need to go back."

Shimmer smiled at her gently. "I was wondering when you'd realize that, Frostfire."

Frostfire let out a hiss and unsheathed her claws, lashing her tail as she glared at the clan of the Broken's leader. "You knew all along?"

"Frostfire, put your claws away. We never do what we should if it's someone else's order. We need to see the value ourselves." Shimmer's words rang with the wisdom of an older cat, and her words were similar to what Moonflower had told her once before. _We only do the best we can if we are truly inspired, not if we are ordered._

Frostfire sheathed her claws.

"You mean... you'll let me go?"

Shimmer sighed. "It's not my choice, Frostfire. I cannot take control over you. And, anyway, I support your decision. You are the chosen cat."

Frostfire dipped her head, her snow-white fur glowing emminently in the darkness. Her voice was a whisper. "I am the chosen cat."

oO0Oo

"Good luck, Frostfire."

"You must succeed!"

"I'm sure you'll do well!"

"Good luck!"

Shimmer had announced to the clan that Frostfire was leaving, and also had briefly explained her reason. Now, the clan was yowling support from behind Frostfire as she padded toward the gorge. Pawsteps sounded behind Frostfire, and she turned. Shimmer stood there, her blue eyes gleaming. "I wish you luck, Frostfire." Emotion passed through them both as they touched noses for the last time, then parted, each heading her own way.

Frostfire headed toward a narrow crack in the ground. The gorge. This time, she had to make it. There would be no Ripple to help her. Her paws were shaky as she neared the gorge, her muscles bunched up, ready to spring. Her heart beat wildly.

She paused. A low moan sounded nearby. She turned her head to see a limp bundle of silver fur lying near her. She sniffed the air, padding closer, crouching near the limp form, a silver-furred tom. She widened her eyes. "Ripple?"

The tom lifted his head up. "Frostfire!" It clearly took an effort to speak, and his voice shook with pain. "How were those cats?"

"Never mind that," Frostfire murmured soothingly. "What happened to you?"

"A rock fell on my foreleg," he muttered, wincing as he lifted up his paw for her to see. "I've been here for a while now, so I think it's healing fine. I'll be able to get back on my own," he added, as though he sensed Frostfire's wanting to help him.

"If you're sure," Frostfire stated unsurely. She paused. "I'm going back, too. I need to help my clan. I hope I'll be able to remember how to get back." She shouldn't have said that. Ripple rose to his paws, flinching a little, but his eyes were bright.

"I'll help you get back."

"No, Ripple! Don't! I'll be fine!" She didn't want the tom to hurt himself any more than he already had.

Ripple's eyes flashed. "I'm coming, at least back to where I live. And that was on the way. So you can't stop me." He padded ahead of her, but Frostfire shoved him back a little, pushing ahead of him.

"I'll go first. I'll be there to help you, then." She bunched her muscles, then sprang. Her paws thrust against the air as she landed safely on the other side, letting out a sigh of relief as her paws touched rock. "Are you sure you can make it?" she called back.

"I'm sure." Ripple crouched down, then sprang.

Frostfire yowled in horror as Ripple's paws met thin air as he tried to land. His eyes were wide with terror as he realized that he had jumped short. Frostfire dropped onto her belly, leaning forward as much as she dared. It wasn't good enough. Ripple's panicked yowl could still be heard as Frostfire watched, horrified, as he fell to the rushing water below.

"Ripple! No!" She threw her head back and yowled to the sky. This cat had died for her, and she would never forgive herself for his death. He had wanted to help her, and had jumped despite his wounds... she shook her head sadly.

Reluctantly, Frostfire turned away, her jaws open. She glimpsed a familiar cave-tunnel entrance, and she sighed, padding through.

oO0Oo

Frostfire let out a sigh of relief as her jaws opened slightly. Home. That's all she'd ever wanted ever since she'd been sent away. She stood in front of the thorn tunnel, breathing in deeply as she padded through the tunnel.

She was home.

Back to Ashflame, Sandshade, Echoshine, and Aspenclaw. She let out a sigh of relief as she padded into the camp.

But a terrible sight greeted her eyes.

Not a cat was in the clearing. Frostfire gasped. The clearing had somehow changed. Moans and whimpers could be heard from the medicine den. _Knowing Nightstar, he's probably led these cats into battle so much that everyone's in the medicine den. Poor Snowblossom, poor Poppylight._

Frostfire padded into camp, then stood in the clearing. "I have come."


	27. Part 1 - Chapter 27

"Frostfire. Didn't I tell you to never return to ThunderClan?" Nightstar's low growl could be hear as he stalked out of his den and toward Frostfire. His expression was a cruel smirk, and his unsheathed claws gleamed in the sunlight.

Cats padded out of the dens, many from the medicine den. Ashflame stopped short in surprise as he caught her gaze, but dipped his head coolly to her. _What was that all about? Doesn't he know me?_ Frostfire turned to face Nightstar again. "You did."

Nightstar narrowed his eyes. "Then why are you here?"

Frostfire let out a hollow laugh as cats circled around the two of them. Only Tawnywhisker stayed close to Nightstar. "To set things right. Did you really expect the clan to believe that _I_ killed Redkit?" She flicked her tail carelessly as she spoke.

"I did, and they do."

The words stung as though Nightstar had clawed her. She suddenly felt dizzy as she stared around at the hostile stares of her former clanmates. Only Ashflame and Echoshine looked hesitant. "No... Nightstar, you thought you had rid yourself of me. But you haven't. I heard you, speaking with Grayscar, Tawnywhisker, and... what was her name? Redstare."

"I ordered Tawnywhisker to kill you!" Nightstar's eyes were wide. "I thought he had finished you off like he had Red-" He cut himself off, but Frostfire smirked as the clan stared, appalled, at their leader, whose moon-like scar still lay on his chest.

"You told him to kill Redkit!" Sandshade's voice rang out of the crowd, followed by yowls of indignation from most of the other cats. Ever so slightly, Frostfire turned her head, mildly satisfied as she glimpsed the disbelieving, horrified looks of her clanmates.

"I... I... I should have killed you that other day. Don't you remember it, Frost _paw?"_ Without a warning, he slammed into Frostfire, his claws piercing her leg. Frostfire yowled and kicked him to one side, then sprang again. She swiped at his face, but he ducked, jumping to his paws. Frostfire let out a snarl, then tried out Grayscar's move, twisting as she scored her claws down his underbelly. Nightstar's eyes blazed, and he rolled, crushing her beneath him. Frostfire struggled, then heaved him off, pouncing neatly onto his shoulders, wrestling the ThunderClan leader down. Frostfire raked her claws across his belly, then sliced his ear, and clawed his face.

"Tell them." Frostfire's voice was choked with fury as she held him firmly down. "Tell them everything." Nightstar's eyes blazed, but he couldn't shake her off. Frostfire snarled and placed a paw firmly on his throat. "Or should I tell them?"

"Fine." Nightstar spat before addressing the clan, his voice tight with breathlessness. Frostfire loosened her hold on his neck, and he surged up, throwing her into the brambled. Yowling, Frostfire felt his claws reach her flanks before she rammed two sets of claws into his throat.

Nightstar let out a gurgling cry, then fell back. His chest still rose and fell, and Frostfire leaped on him, pinning him down. "Now, will you tell them?"

"I killed Mistpaw," he spat. "And Yellowgaze. And Brackenstar. And told Tawnywhisker to kill Redkit." His words were greeted with gasps of horror. "But that's because she-"

"Silence!" Frostfire spat, sinking her claws into his throat. "How about that claw-moon scar that you've got there?" Nightstar didn't speak. "You did it to yourself. You wanted to gain more _respect_ by faking StarClan's protection, when you really have the Dark Forest's."

And with that, she raked her claws once more across his throat, and he went limp. Suddenly, he opened his eyes again. _Oh, StarClan. I forgot he had nine lives._ She tore her claws across his neck and belly, again and again, watching him die over and over again beneath her.

Finally, he went limp, and his breathing stopped forever.

"You killed him!" Tawnywhisker sprang toward her, his claws outstretched. Taken by surprise, Frostfire drew back, but not in time. He bit down on her ear, but she drove him off her. Her energy was fueled by anger as she struck, over and over again.

Frostfire lifted her paw. "Do you want to tell the clan what you've done?"

Tawnywhisker writhed beneath her. "Remember, Frostfire," he muttered, though only part of the clan could hear. "He who laughs last, laughs longest." He raised his voice. "I killed Redkit, and I believed in Nightstar's actions." Still, his eyes blazed furiously as Frostfire held him down.

Frostfire pricked her ears as she heard a low creak. Inside her head, she heard a desperate voice, that somehow was merged with two others. _"Frostfire! Move!"_ It sounded hauntingly like Moonflower, Yellowfang, and Cinderblaze together.

But she couldn't.

She was frozen to the spot, staring upward in horror as an ash tree fell, directly heading toward the two of them. Tawnywhisker, too, seemed to be panicked. Before she could move, Frostfire crumpled to the ground, and saw nothing but a blinding white.

It was gone, in a flash. Frostfire moved her paw. _I'm alive._ She slowly wriggled out from under one of the branches, then stared back at Tawnywhisker's limp body. The clan was silent, staring at her in horror. Snowblossom was the first one to speak. "You must have been protected by StarClan!"

"You're alive!" another voice mewed.

"It's a miracle!"

"StarClan's doing!"

"How did it happen?"

Frostfire flicked her tail for silence before she turned back to face the fallen ash. Tawnywhisker's chest no longer rose and fell. His body was cold and limp. Frostfire felt a small twinge of triumph within her, and she sprang onto the tree that crushed Tawnywhisker's limp form.

Her crystal blue eyes had a restored sparkle to them, and though her paws were caked with blood, her expression was soft, yet powerful.

 _It's over, StarClan. I've done it. I've fulfilled my destiny, at last._

Frostfire stared for a few long heartbeats at Nightstar's black, unmoving pelt, then lingered her gaze on Tawnywhisker's tawny, still fur.

Then she spoke.

"Remember, Tawnywhisker. He who laughs last, laughs longest."


	28. Part 1 - Chapter 28

Frostfire padded back toward the clan, facing it once more. Their expressions were that of disgust, horror, and shock as Frostfire blinked calmly. _I've done it!_ she thought excitedly. _I completed my destiny!_ Her heart soared in triumph, momentarily ignoring the fact that her former clanmates might not be ready to accept her yet.

Surprisingly, Brightwing spoke first. "Thank you, Frostfire."

Slowly, the rest of the clan joined in.

"You saved ThunderClan!"

"Nightstar was evil!"

"He trained in the Dark Forest!"

Frostfire flicked her tail for silence, which fell immediately onto the cats that stood before her. Her blue eyes were clear as she spoke, revealing the truth for the first time. "I'm sorry, ThunderClan," she mewed, her calm voice laced with regret. "I should have told you earlier." She paused, and the clan stared at her, confused, for an explanation. "I was a new apprentice when Mistpaw died, if you remember?"

She paused, and received a few silent nods from the watching cats. She hid her anxiety and nervousness, by masking it with eerie calm.

"I saw Nightstar kill her. He was only Night _paw_ at the time, and it was no rogue. He, however, swore me to secrecy and forced me to keep it a secret. I should have revealed it, but he would have returned to harm the clan later on, if I had. Later on, Ashflame and I saw him murder Yellowgaze and Brackenstar, but that time, he didn't see us there. Then, at night, over a moon ago," Frostfire continued, "I heard Nightstar telling Tawnywhisker to kill Redkit, and blame it on me."

She paused, and tears filled her eyes, but she would not let them fall. "I don't understand why you ever believed him."

"He showed us white fur under the kit's claws!" Blossomshade mewed quietly. "But I suppose he just put it there on purpose to make it look like you did it, Frostfire."

"Besides," Frostfire mewed, dipping her head to Blossomshade, "I'm not the only white cat there is." Frostfire padded a few paces closer to the clan. "I'm sorry I had to kill your leader and deputy in front of you all."

" _Our_ leader and deputy?" Whitefoot echoed, staring at her. "Does that mean you won't rejoin ThunderClan?"

Frostfire's heart soared. "I'd like to return, if the clan will have me." One or two yowls of support came from the cats watching her.

"But who will lead us, now?" Dawnflower stepped forward, her red fur glistening.

"Isn't it obvious?" Snowblossom snapped. "StarClan obviously had a reason for protecting her when the tree fell! Frostfire killed two of the clan's biggest traitors! Frostfire, will you lead ThunderClan?" At her words, a supportive murmuring broke out through the clan, and many nodded agreeably.

Frostfire, however, froze. She didn't know whether to accept this much. _StarClan, is this also my destiny?_

Almost as if in reply, Cinderblaze's gentle voice sounded in her head. _"Frostfire, this is what I trained you for. You had better accept this!"_

Moonflower chimed in heartbeats later. _"You can't rely on StarClan for everything, Frostfire. Make your own choices sometimes."_

Frostfire flicked her tail, then raised it, puffing out her chest. Her crystal blue eyes sparkled, and her white fur glowed in the sunlight as she dipped her head proudly. "Yes. I will lead ThunderClan to victory."

oO0Oo

"Aren't you going to perform that ceremony?" Leafpaw asked, padding forward.

"What?" Frostfire turned to her, confused. "Which ceremony?"

Echoshine padded up, flicking Frostfire with her tail. "Don't tell me forgotten! You need to appoint a deputy!"

Frostfire jumped. "Right."

 _Who should I name as deputy?_ Frostfire paced back and forth, thinking. _Whitefoot would be a popular choice, but he's young, and I don't know if he's capable of being the next leader... I would name Brightwing, she has all the skills, only if she can learn to befriend me... I think that'll be the perfect way for us to become amiable towards each other._

Frostfire felt a slight thrill within her heart as she bunched her muscles and sprang onto the Highledge. The rock felt cool and smooth beneath her paws as she reaised her head in a strong yowl. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!"

Frostfire watched proudly as the clan - _her_ clan - poured out of the dens and into the clearing. "I thank you all for naming me as leader," she mewed, dipping her head. "I need a deputy, now. I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of my warrior ancestors will hear and approve my choice. Brightwing will be the new deputy of ThunderClan."

Brightwing padded forward, surprise evident in her expression. She clearly hadn't expected this, and from Frostfire, of all cats. "I will serve you the best I can."

Frostfire dipped her head gratefully. "Brightwing, you are an experienced and skilled warrior. I hope you will prove your worth as my deputy." So saying, she sprang down from the Highledge, only to be stopped by a bewildered Brightwing.

"Why did you choose me as deputy?"

Frostfire sighed. "Because you have all the skills that are required of a deputy, and also because maybe, this way, we'll be able to create a friendship between us." Brightwing dipped her head graciously, and Frostfire padded over to talk to Ashflame.

What was up with her mate anyway? How could he ever _believe_ Nightstar?

She stalked over to Ashflame. "I need to talk to you." Startled by her urgency and slight anger, Ashflame dipped his head and followed her into the leader's den. Frostfire tried not to flinch at the overwhelming scent of Nightstar.

"What is it?"

"Oh, and you're asking _me?"_ Frostfire lashed her tail. "You knew what Nightstar was up to, and still you believed him? You know it wasn't me who killed Redkit, but you decide to support Nightstar anyway."

"What? I never-"

"Then what was that look you gave me when I first padded into camp? Normally, you would flick your tail, touch noses, or _something_ like that, but you've never just dipped your head to me before! It's obvious you believed him."

"I didn't believe him," Ashflame mewed calmly. "He just forbade us from interacting with you."

"Huh?"

"Really." Ashflame dipped his head. "And I'm sorry if it looked like I believed Nightstar." Frostfire's anger was replaced with an overwhelming sense of relief. "I love you, Frostfire."

Frostfire twined her tail with his. "I love you, too."


	29. Part 1 - Chapter 29

Frostfire padded after Snowblossom. "How did it happen?"

Poppylight had died in the time that Frostfire had been with the clan of the Broken, and Snowblossom found it tough to cope with the loss of her mentor. "She had greencough, and we didn't have enough catmint for her. I wish she was here now."

"You'll see her in your dreams," Frostfire promised.

"But I want to hear her voice, and feel her fur, and her to talk to me!" Snowblossom wailed, pressing against Frostfire for a few heartbeats.

Frostfire sighed. "I'm sure you'll be a great medicine cat." The two were headed for the Moonpool, for Frostfire to become the ThunderClan leader with her lives and leader name. Frostfire's heart was beating wildly, and she was almost sure that Snowblossom could hear it drumming against her chest. "What do you think will happen? How does the ceremony go?"

"You'll find out, Frostfire." Snowblossom paused. "You know, this is my first time seeing a leader ceremony. If you remember, Poppylight went with Nightstar and Brackenstar." Frostfire squinted, thinking, remembering. She nodded.

"You know, Snowblossom, I wasn't a loner or rogue when I was exiled." Snowblossom stopped.

"You weren't?"

Frostfire shook her head. "I was a clan cat, still. There was a clan full of cats who were unjustly forced out of their clan, and it was called the clan of the Broken. Do you remember a cat called Honeykit, who was Nightstar's sister, and mysteriously vanished?"

"Yeah."

"Her name is Honeyflower, and she's a warrior there. She was attacked by Nightstar when they were kits, and he sent her away."

"Really?" Frostfire nodded. "Well, anyway, here we are. The Moonpool." Frostfire was seeing the Moonpool for the first time, and it looked like a round pool of shining water. Still, it was in no way comparable to the Starstream in the clan of the Broken.

"There was a way to connect to StarClan, there too. It was the Starstream, and it was simply beautiful."

Snowblossom nodded, looking intrigued. "Are you ready?"

"Couldn't be readier." Frostfire nodded, bursting with excitement and determination.

"Then lick up a few drops."

Frostfire padded over to the water, then bent over and lapped at it. The water was startlingly cold, and sweetly icy, making Frostfire fall into complete blackness.

She awoke in an all-too-familiar place. _StarClan._

Snowblossom appeared beside her heartbeats later.

"Welcome." All the voices Frostfire had ever known and loved rang out clearly as one. Frostfire breathed in. _I'm ready._

The first cat to step forward was Poppylight, who touched her nose to the top of Frostfire's white head. "With this life, I give you endurance. Use it well to lead your clan through its hard times." Frostfire gritted her teeth as a bolt of pain shot through her, yet her paws felt rooted to the ground. _Endure it._

A black she-cat stepped forward. "My name is Shadowflight. I was your mother's mother." She paused, resting her muzzle on Frostfire's head. "With this life, I give you a mother's love. Use it well, for your clanmates are like your kits." Frostfire resisted the urge to yowl out loud as everything within her tightened in readiness.

Cinderblaze padded forward. "I missed you so much!" Frostfire mewed, purring.

Her former mentor simply dipped her head. "I knew you'd become leader someday, Frostfire. With this life I give you compassion. Use it well to guide you as you lead." This time, though Frostfire was ready to feel pain flash through her, this was painless, just like warmth all around her.

A white tom padded toward her, and for a moment, Frostfire was confused, before she realized that this was her father, Whitefur. "With this life, I give you determination. Use it well to keep your clan's hopes up during the hard leaf-bares."

Moonflower rested her muzzle on Frostfire's head, and Frostfire let out a purr of enthusiasm. "With this life, I give you hope. Use it well to support your clan." Frostfire realized that she was running through the darkness, not from something but _to_ something, a brilliant star in the darkness. Jolted back, Frostfire realized that Moonflower had already left, and a ginger tom took her place.

"My name is Firestar, but you already know that," he mewed. "I give you a life for judgement. You may not always know what's right or wrong, but you must trust yourself, and your instincts." Frostfire felt a stinging pain, as though she was being torn in two, as Firestar padded away.

A large gray tom padded toward her. "I am Graystripe," he mewed, resting his nose on her head. "With this life I give you strength. Use it well to be a strong leader for your clan." Frostfire couldn't wince as she felt frozen, as though she was made of stone.

A small, young tom bounced forward, making Frostfire purr as he stood on his hind legs to place his muzzle on her head. "With this life, I give you honor," Redkit mewed seriously. "Use it well to help ThunderClan believes in you and your decisions."

The last cat was Brackenstar. His amber eyes gleamed as he touched his nose to her head. "I was wrong to believe in Nightstar over you," he mewed. "I give you a life for pride. You need to stand up and care for your clan as you would a kit." He paused, and Frostfire found herself standing with her chest puffed out, her eyes gleaming. "I hail you by your new name, Froststar. Your old life is no more. You have now received the nine lives of a leader, and StarClan grants you the guardianship of ThunderClan. Defend it well; care for the young and old; honor your ancestors and the traditions of the warrior code; live each life with dignity."

Froststar let out a purr, her white fur gleaming, blue eyes glimmering, as StarClan yowled her new name to the skies. "Froststar! Froststar!"

Suddenly, she was no longer in StarClan, but lying by the Moonpool. She stood up, her tail raised proudly as Snowblossom got to her feet. She stopped in her tracks before she was about to take a step forward. Her muscles seemed to weaken for a moment, then strengthen. "What's wrong?" Snowblossom asked.

"Strange," Froststar murmured. "I suddenly felt so tired. But I'm fine now, really." Snowblossom sniffed at her, then drew back, her worried eyes meeting Froststar's. "What's wrong?"

Snowblossom sighed. "You may as well know. You're expecting kits."

oO0Oo

Froststar lay in her nest in the nursery, whimpering in pain as Ashflame stood worriedly over her. "I'll call Snowblossom for you. The kits may be coming now." It had been a little over a moon since Froststar assumed leadership over ThunderClan.

She let out a moan of pain as something passed through her belly. Snowblossom entered, looking worried. "Ashflame, could you leave the nursery, please? Just until she's done kitting." Ashflame reluctantly dipped his head and left. Snowblossom placed a paw on Froststar's belly, and she whimpered. "Yes, the kits are coming, now, Froststar. I hope all goes well."

Suddenly, Poppylight's voice rang in her head. _"I gave you a life for endurance, remember?"_

Froststar breathed in, slowly, then gritted her teeth as pain flashed through her. "The first one's coming..." Snowblossom mewed, her paw still on Froststar's belly, coaxing her. "Push out, Froststar. You're doing fine."

Froststar couldn't hold back a yowl as a spasm passed through her, and a small bundle landed on the moss beside her. "Is it okay?"

Snowblossom sniffed the kit, then licked it briskly. "Yes. One tom."

Froststar yowled again, as a stabbing pain swept from her chest to her belly. She craned her neck, looking toward the newborn kit, but fell back as pain rippled across her belly, leaving her feeling weaker. This time, she didn't yowl, but the pain was more intense than before.

"I think there's one more," Snowblossom mewed. Froststar let out a low moan as a softer, weaker agony flashed through her. Snowblossom lifted her paw, then placed in on her belly again. "That's it. You have one tom and three she-cats."

Froststar pushed herself to a sitting position, then looked sideways at her kits, while Snowblossom yowled for Ashflame to come in. Pushing back her exhaustion, the white she-cat stared at her young kits, who lay together, softly mewling. Ashflame bounded into the den, then froze as he spotted the four kits. "They're perfect!" he whispered. "One of the she-cat's looks really similar to you, except it's more silvery."

"I want the tom to be Stormkit, because he looks just like you," Froststar murmured, nudging him forward, and his blue eyes fluttered open once before closing again. The small silver-white she-cat moved, revealing sharp white teeth and blue eyes, along with dark paws and tail-tip.

"Then the silver she-cat is Darkkit, because of her tail," Ashflame mewed quietly. "And the light brown tabby looks just like... Heatherpaw, so Heatherkit."

The last one was a ginger she-kit, whose green eyes blinked open, then shut again. "Firekit," Froststar murmured, resting her tail on the ginger she-kit.

Snowblossom leaned closer to Froststar, then whispered, _"There will be a fire, blazing strongly to reveal and break the black evil in her path."_

 **YAY! PART 1 IS OVER! NOW, ONTO PART 2...**

 **READ AND REVIEW!**


	30. Part 2 - Chapter 1

**PART 2 - LIVING SPIRIT - FIREKIT**

Firekit crept into the ferns, hping it would disguise her scent well enough. She really didn't have enough time to think of a proper hiding place before Darkkit came around looking for her, Stormkit, and Heatherkit. The dark green ferns rustled mildly as Firekit crashed into them, her ginger fur bright and flame-colored as she dropped into a crouch, surrounded by ferns.

The leaves rustled, swaying in and out, while Firekit ducked her head, her green eyes searching out the location of Darkkit, her white-furred littermate with a black tail-tip and paws. _There!_ Sure enough, the silver-white she-cat lifted her head, her jaws open to taste the air from where she stood a few tail-lengths away. As she narrowed her blue eyes, staring directly toward the clump of ferns where Firekit hid, she frowned. "Mouse-dung! Firekit must have gone to hide her scent there!"

And she turned and stalked away, leaving Firekit to breathe out in relief.

She pricked her ears as she heard a set of small paws scrabbling nearby, and she swung her head around to see Stormkit, struggling to get a firmer grip on top of a large boulder. _Yeah, Stormkit. That's a brilliant place to hide. Right on top of a rock._ But she realized that Stormkit had flattened himself, disguising the gray color of his fur with that of the boulder.

Darkkit lifted her head, then turned in the opposite direction of Firekit. The ginger she-cat watched as her littermate vanished behind the nursery, her nose to the ground as she tried to find a trail. Firekit stifled a purr of amusement as she heard Heatherkit's cry of "Mouse-dung!" from somewhere on the other end of the ThunderClan camp.

Heartbeats later, Darkkit returned into the main clearing, with Heatherkit, a pale brown tabby with hazy blue eyes, trailing behind her. Firekit watched as her silver-white sister turned to face Heatherkit. "Do you have any idea where Firekit and Stormkit are?"

Firekit crouched, willing Heatherkit not to give anything away. Heatherkit shrugged. "Even if I did, I wouldn't be allowed to tell you." Firekit let out a sigh of relief, her tail-tip twitching. That was a mistake. Darkkit turned in her direction, then narrowed her eyes.

"Firekit disguised her scent in the ferns, so let's start tracking her from there."

Tail low, Firekit crept closer, edging slowly toward the fallen oak that was only a few tail-lengths away. Quickly, she sprang into the hollow of the tree, hiding her head beneath it. She edged deeper inside as she heard Heatherkit mew, "I found a trail of fern-scent leading that way." She flicked her tail toward the fallen oak.

Firekit watched as Darkkit padded ahead, and heartbeats later, she heard a thump on the wood just above her. That meant that her littermates had landed onto the tree, just above her. Slowly, she peeped out.

Darkkit was sniffing the ground. "The scent disappears here. So that means..." Firekit curled into a ball, but Darkkit poked her head inside the hollow anyway. "Got you!"

"Mouse-dung!" Firekit clambered onto the ground, shifting her green gaze slightly toward where Stormkit lay, his gray fur almost identical to the color of the boulder. Darkkit and Heatherkit were turned the other way, so she saw Stormkit lift his head, open his blue eyes, then make a pouncing motion, gesturing to Darkkit. Firekit translated that as _When they pass by, I'll pounce._

She nodded, then turned to Darkkit, biting back a purr of amusement at what Stormkit was about to do. "Hey, Darkkit! I'm getting something that leads this way!" She pointed with her nose in the direction of the boulder, then padded forward.

Darkkit nodded then followed her. As soon as she neared the rock, Stormkit let out a fearsome yowl and dropped directly onto Darkkit. Firekit and Heatherkit purred in amusement as Stormkit pinned a spluttering, startled Darkkit down, waving his tail. "I won!"

Spitting, Darkkit wriggled out from under Stormkit, then got to her paws, shaking her fur to rid it of dust and leaves. "That's enough of that game."

"Let's play something else, then!" Firekit suggested.

"All right," Darkkit mewed. "Let's play warriors! I'm Darkstar, leader of ThunderClan!"

Heatherpaw curled her tail around her paws, and Scorchclaw, the half-brother of the former leader Nightstar, whom Firekit had definitely heard about from her mother, padded past them. His calm red stare met her green one. He was always one of those cats who was kind to them, and he was probably a wonderful fighter as well.

"But why do you get ThunderClan?" Stormkit whined.

Darkkit rolled her eyes. "Fine. Then I'm Darkstar of RiverClan."

Firekit pushed ahead of her. "I'm Firestar of ShadowClan, and I want my deputy to be Stormkit!" The gray tom flicked his tail and padded to her side, his blue eyes expressing annoyance as he spoke.

"No, my name is Storm _claw!"_ Stormkit protested.

Firekit shrugged. "Whatever."

Darkkit nodded. "Then my deputy is Heather... Heather..."

"Heatherstorm," Heatherkit supplied, gliding over to stand beside Darkkit. "Darkstar, there are ShadowClan cats who are stealing our prey! We must attack!"

Darkkit nodded. "Only RiverClan is entitled to the fish in the lake, and only we can hunt on our territory!"

"We never stole your prey, fish-breath!" Firekit retorted, using an insult that her father, Ashflame, had used when referring to RiverClan cats. "How dare you falsely accuse us? ShadowClan, attack!" She bounded forward, springing at Darkkit and hitting her squarely in the chest. Darkkit rolled over, then threw Firekit off, but she landed on her back, ready to attack Darkkit with all four paws.

Heatherkit was locked in 'battle' with Stormkit, and both were swiping and hissing.

Firekit battered her sister's belly with soft paws, then rolled, crushing the black-pawed kit as she flopped down on top of her. "I won," she whispered. Turning her head, she saw that Stormkit was rolling, raking soft paws across Heatherkit's flanks, and taking a blow on his face.

Darkkit wriggled, but she couldn't throw Firekit off. "RiverClan, retreat!" Firekit smirked innocently as she lifted her weight off her littermate. "We'll meet again soon, ShadowClan!" Firekit watched as Darkkit padded past the fallen tree, then padded back, no longer as Darkstar of RiverClan.

Firekit turned her head to see her mother, who was also the clan leader, Froststar, speak briefly to Echoshine, who had been her former apprentice.

She loved hearing from Froststar as well as from the elders about the former treacherous leader Nightstar, and how Froststar defeated him and his traitorous deputy, and was protected by StarClan during the fight. _I'm going to be the best warrior in all the clans!_ Firekit vowed silently. _Even better than Froststar!_

"Hello, Firekit." Firekit jumped, startled, then turned back to see Heatherkit let out a purr of amusement. "Welcome back."

"You were in a world of your own," Stormkit assisted.

Firekit shrugged. "Nothing important."

"Okay." Darkkit shrugged. "What do _you_ think we should do? Stormkit wants to sneak out of camp, and that's probably the most exciting suggestion we've got so far. Are you in?"

"Of course I am!" Firekit swished her tail excitedly. She would get to see where the warriors and apprentices actually went. "Let's go!" Firekit dropped into a crouch, her ginger body flat against the ground as she imitated the way the warriors hunted, as best as she could. "Let's disguise our scent first!"

"We should each disguise our scent in different places, so it's like a forest," Heatherkit suggested. "I'll go for the ferns." Firekit watched as she turned and dove into the very clump of ferns where Firekit had been, and rolled in it, the scent clinging to her fur. Firekit dropped to the ground, and rolled in the dirt and grass, then stood up, shaking the bits of grass out of her flaming ginger coat.

Darkkit returned from where she had splashed herself into a puddle, and Stormkit emerged from the medicine den, covered by the stench of herbs.

"Should we go through the dirtplace tunnel?" Darkkit asked, her silver-white fur still rather damp.

Firekit wrinkled her nose. "It smells bad, though!"

"It's probably the only way we can go without being seen," Stormkit mewed, crouching so that he couldn't be seen in the tall grass. "Come on!"

"Where are you four going?" Firekit turned, gulping. Froststar stood over them, her blue eyes narrowed as she gazed over her kits. "Not out of camp, I hope?" Firekit shot a look at Darkkit and Stormkit, whose tails drooped. Froststar's gaze softened. "You know, you have less than a moon until you're apprentices, and I'll make sure you all get mentors who'll teach you the best. But for now, stay in camp."

Darkkit groaned, then shook out her wet fur. "All that scent-disguising was for nothing!"

"I guess she's right," Firekit muttered. "I wouldn't want to be found by some other clan. We don't even know the territories, yet!"

"We wouldn't go that far," Stormkit mewed quietly, though he, too, looked subdued.

Heatherkit shrugged. "But that moon seems to take forever!" She paused. "What now?" Firekit padded toward the fresh-kill pile. "Come on; I'm starving!"


	31. Part 2 - Chapter 2

Firekit winced as her mother's stare landed on her. It seemed as though Froststar was often gazing at her with a thoughtful expression on her face, more than she did any of her littermates. However, when she asked, Froststar never gave her a proper answer.

It had been over half a moon since they had last tried to leave the camp, and they had never tried it since.

It looked as though Froststar was suddenly jolted by something, for she quickly switched her glance to one of an overprotective queen, and with her tail, she ushered them into the nursery. "Come on, you four. Get into the den; it's time to sleep." Her eyes drifted to something outside, and she flicked her tail. "On second thoughts, I have to do something first."

She padded out of the den, Firekit's watchful green gaze trained on her white fur. She had gotten the green eyes from Froststar's mother, apparently, and she was the only one out of her littermates with ginger fur.

Firekit stayed at the entrance of the nursery, watching as Froststar leaped onto the Highledge with ease.

"What is she doing?" Stormkit asked, coming to her side. Firekit shrugged as Froststar let out a call.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" Firekit watched, wishing she were an apprentice already, as her clanmates padded out of the warriors' den. There was only one apprentice, Leafpaw, and she was already in the clearing. The ginger she-cat pricked her ears as her mother mewed, "Today we gather for a very important ceremony in one of our cats' life."

 _She must be making Leafpaw a warrior!_ Firekit guessed, from the way Leafpaw swished her tail in excitement.

"Leafpaw has completed moons of training as an apprentice and is ready to become a warrior. Ashflame," she mewed, addressing Firekit's father, "is Leafpaw ready to receive her warrior name?"

Ashflame, a large, pale gray tom, dipped his head. "She is."

"Leafpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

The lithe, cream-and-brown she-cat nodded. "I do."

"Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Leafpaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Leafstone. StarClan honors your determination and patience, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Firekit watched as Leafstone licked Froststar's shoulder respectfully, and the white leader, in turn, rested her muzzle on Leafstone's head.

Firekit, Darkkit, Heatherkit, and Stormkit joined in, cheering for their clanmate. "Leafstone! Leafstone! Leafstone!"

The small, ginger she-cat bounded up to congratulate her friend. "You're a warrior!" Leafstone let out a purr, her tail brushing across Firekit's head. Firekit, however, drew back as she realized that _two_ cats had their gazes fixed on her: Froststar and Scorchclaw.

oO0Oo

"Bet you can't run as fast as me, Firekit!" Heatherkit mewed, turning her head to face Firekit. The day of their apprenticeship was drawing closer, and, by now, Heatherkit had made it clear that she wanted to become a medicine cat apprentice.

"Bet I can!" Firekit leaped over her sister and dropped into a crouch. "Let's go!" She and her littermate took off at the exact same moment, and she gradually pulled ahead of the pale brown tabby, skidding to a halt in front of the fresh-kill pile and Ashflame, who stared curiously at her. "Beat you!" she yowled back, teasingly, as Heatherkit stumbled to a stop, panting.

"You must take after you mother, Firekit," Ashflame mewed, licking Firekit's head. "She was the fastest cat there was!"

"Really?" Firekit stared wide-eyed at her father, who nodded.

Ashflame turned to Heatherkit. "And I think it's wonderful that you want to be a medicine cat, Heatherkit. Have you asked Snowblossom about it?" Heatherkit stared at her paws for a heartbeat, then shook her head apologetically to Ashflame. "Then run along, you two."

"I'll come with you!" Firekit volunteered, loping easily alongside her sister. "Hey, Darkkit!" she yowled. "Come with us! You too, Stormkit!" Her other littermates bounded toward them, looking confused.

"What happened?" Darkkit asked.

"I think Heatherkit needs all the support she can get," Firekit mewed. "She needs to talk to Snowblossom to become her apprentice." Stormkit nodded falling in beside Firekit, who easily pulled ahead of the three, then stopped in front of the medicine den. A brown she-cat with white petal-like shapes on her pelt poked her head out of the den.

"Are you hurt?"

Stormkit shook his head. "But... it's just that..." He turned to Heatherkit, who studied her paws closely.

"Heatherkit..." Darkkit began.

At this point, Heatherkit looked up. "I want to become your apprentice," she mewed. Snowblossom looked a little surprised, but she tipped her head to one side, thinking quickly.

"Heatherkit, come with me. Let's talk to Froststar about this, but no doubt she'll say yes." Firekit watched as the medicine cat padded towards her mother's den, along with her sister.

Stormkit stared at Firekit as though she had gotten bees in her brain. "Is that all?"

"Well... yeah, I guess," Firekit admitted. "But now that it's done, let's go and play warriors!" Firekit padded over to the Highledge, Darkkit and Stormkit right behind her. "I wish there was a way we could climb onto this rock." She lifted a soft paw and patted the hard, gray boulder with a paw.

"Use your claws, Firekit!" Firekit turned to see Darkkit place her claws just on the places where she could get a strong grip. Firekit watched as Darkkit scrambled to the next indent, then jumped gracefully to the ground.

"Where did you learn that?"

"Scorchclaw showed me." Darkkit shrugged. "Last one to the top is a newborn kit!"

Firekit jumped onto the boulder, unsheathing her claws so that she could get a strong hold on the crevices and indents. Her muscles ached as she pulled herself up, her claws firmly embedded in the Highledge. Her tail helped her push her body to the next crevice, then the next. Finally, thankfully, she dragged herself onto the flat top, panting.

Darkkit pulled herself up at the same time as Firekit, and Stormkit was just behind her.

"I wonder how it feels to call the clan together from up here," Darkkit whispered. Stormkit widened his eyes, but he looked interested.

"Looks like we have four clan leaders for ThunderClan, don't we?" Froststar's voice sounded from the ground behind the rock, and, startled, Firekit fell back, her claws slipping as she struggled to get a hold on the rock. Stormkit fastened his teeth in her scruff, and he and Darkkit dragged Firekit back up, where she shook out her ginger fur, dipping her head gratefully.

"S-sorry, Froststar," Firekit mewed, momentarily forgetting that this was her mother, as well as her leader.

Froststar just let out a purr, then tipped her head to one side in mock curiosity. "Now, how exactly did you plan on getting down?" Darkkit and Stormkit shot Firekit a glance. After all, it had been her idea to try and climb the Highledge.

Firekit shrugged.

"Do you need help?" Froststar grabbed Firekit's scruff then lowered her gently to the ground. Stormkit and Darkkit landed beside her heartbeats after. "You see, there's a reason why kits aren't made clan leaders, you know." Firekit bristled in annoyance, but she knew that her mother was only teasing.

"Did you already finish speaking to Snowblossom?" Darkkit asked.

"Did you agree?" Firekit asserted.

Froststar nodded. "Of course I did! I wouldn't deprive my own kit of that chance!"

"Then... where is Heatherkit now?" Stormkit asked.

"Trying to learn herbs already," Froststar mewed, with an edge of amusement in her voice. Darkkit, Firekit, and Stormkit exchanged amused glances, then all three burst into amused purrs.


	32. Part 2 - Chapter 3

Firekit let out a muffled groan as a weight landed on top of her. Without even opening her eyes, she knew it was Stormkit. "Stormkit... get off." She curled her tail around her body, trying to sleep, but the cat on top of her cuffed her mildly around the ears.

That did it.

She jerked up, letting Stormkit tumble to the ground, then swiped at his face. "What's so important anyway?"

"Mouse-brain!" Stormkit stood up, shaking the dust from his fur. "Today's our apprentice ceremony, Firekit! Don't tell me you forgot!" Firekit didn't reply. She jumped to her paws, her tail swishing excitedly as she headed toward the entrance of the nursery. "Well, you might just say thank-you!" Stormkit sulked, calling after her, but she didn't reply as she headed out of the nursery.

Teeth met her tail and dragged her back.

Firekit turned to see Froststar, her blue eyes gleaming, gently pull her back. "You need to be groomed, first. And there's no rush. The ceremony won't start until I want it to." Firekit suppressed a wince as her mother's tongue rasped over her fur, slicking it down. "Remember, you four, I'll always be your mother, even when you become warriors."

Firekit was the first one out in the clearing, then Darkkit, then Stormkit, and last of all, Heatherkit. She bounded into the clearing, her green eyes glimmering with hope and anticipation. _I'm going to be the best apprentice!_

Froststar followed, then leaped onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!" Firekit purred as she saw the warriors, practically led by Ashflame, pour into the clearing, as there were no apprentices in the den for now. Until a few heartbeats later...

"My four kits have reached the age of six moons and are ready to become apprentices," Froststar mewed. "Darkkit, Stormkit, Firekit, and Heatherkit." Firekit raised her tail as her name was said. "Darkkit, step forward. From this moment onward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Darkpaw. Sandshade, you are ready for your first apprentice. You have proved to be loyal and strong, so pass on all you know to Darkpaw."

Firekit watched as her sister bounded over to her new mentor, then touched noses to her.

"Stormkit, from this moment onward, until you receive you warrior name, you will be known as Stormpaw. Echoshine, you too are ready for an apprentice. You are a determined, patient she-cat, so pass on your skill to Stormpaw."

Stormpaw looked thrilled as he bumped his nose to the tortoiseshell's.

"Firekit, step forward." Firekit padded forward, her green eyes gleaming, her chest puffed out. "From this moment onward, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Firepaw. Brightwing, you have proven to be a brave and loyal deputy, so pass on all you know to Firepaw." Darkpaw let out a good-natured, playfully envious gasp. Inside, though she was proud to have the deputy as her mentor, Firepaw cringed. Her mother wanted her under a strict-ish she-cat, and the deputy, too.

And then there was the way her mother had been thoughtfully looking at her, right from the start.

Firepaw jolted down to the earth. Her clanmates were staring at her, waiting. Dipping her head, she padded proudly toward Brightwing, then touched noses to her. "I'll do the best I can!"

Brightwing purred. "Me, too," she whispered.

"Last of all, Heatherkit, from this moment onward, until you receive your full name, you will be known as Heatherpaw."

At this point, Snowblossom stepped forward. "Cats of ThunderClan, I will not be around forever. So it's time I took on an apprentice. I have chosen a cat who shows patience and willingness to learn from me. Your next medicine cat will be Heatherpaw."

"Heatherpaw," Froststar mewed, "do you accept the post of apprentice to Snowblossom?"

Heatherpaw dipped her head. "I do."

"Then at the half-moon, you must travel to the Moonpool to be accepted by StarClan before all the other medicine cats," Snowblossom mewed, touching her nose to Heatherpaw's.

"The good wishes of all of ThunderClan will go with you," Froststar mewed.

Firepaw puffed out her chest as the clan yowled their new names to the sky. "Darkpaw! Stormpaw! Firepaw! Heatherpaw!" Then, she turned to Brightwing, who used her tail to lift Firepaw's head toward her a little, then let out a small purr.

"You'll do fine, Firepaw." She paused. "Do you want to come with me on a tour of the territory?"

"Will Darkpaw and Stormpaw come?"

Brightwing shook her head. "You need to learn to do things without your littermates. You can't always be on patrol with them. It's good that you're friends, but you can be independent, Firepaw." Firepaw nodded and padded after her mentor. She followed Brightwing through the thorn tunnel and out of camp for the first time.

The sight nearly took her breath away.

She was standing in a clearing, completely surrounded by trees that were moist and glistening in the sunlight. And all around her, the warm scent of prey flooded her senses. Brightwing let out a purr. "You like your first view of the forest?"

"Yes!" Firepaw turned and followed her, but her mentor stopped short, then turned around.

Brightwing turned to her. "You already know the five clans, do you not?"

"ThunderClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, and WindClan, and..."

"StarClan." Brightwing flicked her tail. "Not many cats remember to consider the dead, but they are just as important. Now, do you already know what the other clans, not StarClan or ThunderClan, eat?"

Firepaw shrugged. "I think RiverClan eats fish, and WindClan rabbits. But I don't know ShadowClan."

"ShadowClan live in a marshy pine forest, so they mainly eat frogs," Brightwing mewed. "Come on, follow me, and you can see for yourself." She padded through the trees, and Firepaw followed. The forest looked beautiful. Firepaw loved the scent of the fresh leaves and the small streams they passed on their way to the border.

Presently, Firepaw wrinkled her nose. _Disgusting!_ "What's that smell?"

Brightwing swished her tail. "ShadowClan." She twitched her whiskers as she saw Firepaw's disgusted expression. "And they say _we_ stink." She shook her head hopelessly. "I'll never understand them." She padded toward an especially strongly-scented strip of grass. "This is the border. If you cross it, ShadowClan have every right to attack you."

Firepaw nodded seriously, her eyes huge.

"Do you see? Over there?" Brightwing mewed. "It's their pine forest." Sure enough, dark, pointed trees dotted what they could see of ShadowClan territory, filling the air with a sharp, wet smell. As Brightwing turned away, Firepaw followed her mentor away from the border, breathing out as they left the disgusting scent of ShadowClan behind them.

 _She's not as strict as other cats described,_ Firepaw thought in surprise.

"Where are we going now?"

Brightwing kept on pacing ahead without turning her head. "When we get there, I'll see if you can tell." She broke into a steady run, Firepaw racing after her, not as fast as she could, though. Her ginger fur fell flat on her back as the wind whipped against her.

And soon enough, the wind carried a dry, bland scent, not as bad as ShadowClan. Firepaw stopped. Gazing out at the flat terrain ahead of her, she tipped ehr head to one side. "Is that WindClan?"

"Well done!" Brightwing sounded pleased. "They live on a flat moorland, as you can see. And here's the border." She turned away. "I'll take you to the lake, but that's as far as we can go. We don't share a dry border with RiverClan, except for a narrow strip of land somewhere near the lake. Come on; I'll show you."


	33. Part 2 - Chapter 4

It had been a moon since Firepaw and her littermates had become apprentices, and now, they were asleep in their nests, safely nestled well within the soft, plush moss of their nests. A ginger she-cat lay curled up in one corner of the den, and her brilliant green eyes were now closed as her chest rose and fell steadily.

Pain.

That was the first thing Firepaw felt once she awoke.

It was everywhere, wracking her body until she could break. But most of all, it came from somewhere inside her. Not her heart, but somewhere, stronger, more determined. But determined to do what?

She wasn't in the ThunderClan apprentices' den anymore.

She wasn't sure where she was. She couldn't even see where she was. All she knew was that she was following a scent trail, her fur bristling as though ready for a fight. Next thing she knew, she was leaping from tree to tree, trying to keep pace with something... some _one..._ ahead of her, and she was running, not away, but towards something unknown.

Suddenly, she realized that she wasn't on solid ground. She wasn't on ground at all. She was standing on thin air.

And she was falling.

Twisting her head to look down, she saw nothing but darkness below. And heartbeats later, she realized that darkness was actually all around her. And a new scent. Still, it was unmistakeable. The scent of death.

With a yowl of alarm, Firepaw jerked up, shivering, to find herself in her nest once more, lowering her head against the scorching glares of Stormpaw and Darkpaw, who sat up as well, staring at her in anger as well as alarm. Darkpaw spoke first. "You okay?"

"We woke up when you yowled," Stormpaw mewed.

Firepaw nodded sheepishly. "Sorry... it was just a dream."

But she knew it was more than just a dream. It was something more important, not just a root digging into her throat or a tough bit of fresh-kill. But it could wait. Nothing important, really. Anyway, she could only do something if she knew what it meant, right?

oO0Oo

"Firepaw, pay attention!" Firepaw snapped back into focus as Brightwing sprang onto her with barely sheathed claws. Wriggling free, Firepaw jumped to her paws, shaking the dust out of her flaming ginger fur. It was the afternoon after her strange dream, and in the past moon, not much had happened; Blueshadow was expecting her second litter, but nothing else.

"Sorry, Brightwing."

"Now, try again, and this time, don't stand like a lump when I attack." Firepaw's green eyes narrowed in determination, and she dropped into a defensive crouch as Brightwing tensed her muscles, about to leap. Her pale tabby-and-white fur seemed to light up in the sunlight, and Firepaw watched as her tail flicked.

Firepaw stumbled back as Brightwing slammed into her. The deputy pressed her against the ground, then released her, fuming.

"For StarClan's sake, Firepaw!" Brightwing snapped. "Fighting a kit would be more challenging than training with you!" Firepaw flinched, tears filling her eyes, but she turned her head away, unwilling to let them fall. Even Brightwing must have realized she had been too harsh, because she drew near and swept her tail over Firepaw's back.

"What's the matter with you today? I could see that you were distracted." Firepaw winced. Were her feelings that easy to read? Brightwing flicked her tail. "I could see it in your eyes. They were wandering, and they were more clouded than usual. What's the matter?"

"I don't know!" Firepaw replied honestly. Because she didn't. She wasn't thinking about the dream, or anything.

It was just... a feeling.

A feeling of what, she couldn't tell.

But it was a feeling.

"All right, try and pay attention, now." Firepaw's green eyes blocked out everything but the larger form of Brightwing. Her mentor leaped, and this time, she sprang into the air, landing on top of Brightwing and forcing soft paws into her back. Brightwing rolled over, and Firepaw jumped off, and when Brightwing leaped, she rolled onto her back, pawing at Brightwing's soft underbelly.

Firepaw jumped back onto her paws, and Brightwing took a few paces back. With lightning speed, she leaped backwards, and suddenly, Firepaw fell to the ground, Brightwing on top of her.

Heartbeats later, Brightwing jumped off.

"How did you do that? I never saw it coming!" Firepaw panted.

Brightwing purred. "Watch closely. It's called the jump-and-pin." Firepaw's green eyes tracked her mentor's every movement as she leaped backwards against a sturdy ash tree, pushed her hind legs against the trunk for force, then, with perfect accuracy, landed on Firepaw's back, pressing her to the ground. "Now you try."

Swallowing nervously, Firepaw backed up, leaping against the tree and pushing herself off. However, she missed Brightwing by a few fox-lengths and landed on the ground, gritting her teeth.

"Well done, but do you know what you did wrong?" Brightwing asked.

Firepaw shook her head.

"Push against the tree harder, and angle your forepaws upward. Do it faster, so that you don't give your opponent any time to move," Brightwing instructed. "Now, try again." Firepaw backed up, springing against the tree, lifting her forepaws as she pushed herself off the ash trunk.

Her green eyes narrowed, focused, as she saw Brightwing's form grow larger and closer...

With a yowl, Firepaw was thrown against the ground. Brightwing stood over her. "Well done! But that's how you defend against this move. Roll onto your back and throw them off. You were too slow! You gave me time to roll onto my back and attack your belly!"

Firepaw swallowed an angry, frustrated retort as she backed up. _Faster._ She landed on Brightwing before she knew she had, and the force had toppled Brightwing to the ground.

A moan escaped her mentor's jaws.

Firepaw released her, wondering whether she had gone too far. "Are you all right?"

But as Brightwing clambered to her paws, her eyes were shining proudly. "I knew you'd be a great warrior, Firepaw." Firepaw's eyes glowed as her mentor dipped her head. As she knew all too well, her mentor didn't give praise very easily.

And the deputy's words still rang in her mind.

 _I knew you'd be a great warrior._


	34. Part 2 - Chapter 5

Firepaw dropped two mice on the fresh-kill pile, then turned to face her mentor, who frowned. "You had the entire day. Is that all you could catch?" It had been a quarter moon since Firepaw's strange dream, and the dream was almost completely forgotten.

Firepaw shook her head. "I buried more behind that bush." She flicked her tail toward a bramble bush a few catlengths away.

"Show me." Rolling her eyes, Firepaw padded toward the bush, swatted a few brambles out of the way, ignoring the stinging scratches that formed on her paws, and revealed a squirrel, a starling, and two voles.

She could hardly keep the annoyance out of her voice. "Satisfied?"

"What's gotten into you?" Brightwing demanded. "You're not normally like this." It was true. Firepaw herself knew that she was more irritated than she would normally be, and she didn't know why. She had the feeling that something bad was about to happen, but she couldn't tell what.

"I don't care!" Firepaw spat furiously. Even her mentor got onto her nerves today, and she seemed to be acting overly protective. Then, she softened her voice, blinking her brilliant green eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Why don't you go and do something that you enjoy?" Brightwing suggested gently. "Then, we'll have to leave for the gathering."

 _The Gathering!_ Though it would be her first, Firepaw didn't feel like going. There was a nagging feeling in her chest that she should make sure nothing bad happened in camp during the night. _Yeah, the Gathering._

Shrugging, Firepaw padded over to Darkpaw and Stormpaw. "Want to practice fighting?" _Anything to get my mind off... off what? Just to relax myself._

From behind her, she heard Brightwing mutter, "When I suggested doing something you enjoy, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind."

Darkpaw shrugged. "Why not?"

"It'll be fun!" Stormpaw chimed in. "Darkpaw, you and me first!" Firepaw dipped her head, then padded to the top of a large boulder, then sat, watching, as the two cats circled each other. She stifled a yawn as Darkpaw attacked first, but Stormpaw dodged, sending her reeling back with a blow to her head. Darkpaw was on her paws almost immediately, and she ducked a blow to her ear.

Darkpaw crept under Stormpaw, then dug soft paws into his belly and threw him onto his back. Darkpaw relaxed a little as Stormpaw went limp, but he surged upward, throwing her off, then jumped on her and pinned her down. "I won!"

"Then go against Firepaw!" Darkpaw suggested, and Firepaw sprang down from the rock, ready to meet her littermate in a mock battle.

Stormpaw leaped first, but Firepaw dodged to one side and brought both her paws down, hard, on Stormpaw's head, fueled by unexplaineable anger at nothing in particular. Stormpaw howled in pain and stopped short. His eyes fixed on something behind her. "Look behind you, Firepaw!"

Firepaw twisted her head around to look, and in the same moment, she found herself on the ground, pinned firmly by Stormpaw.

"You cheated!" Firepaw growled, angrily. She wriggled free to face her brother. "You distracted me on purpose! You cheated!" Her claws unsheathed, and she whipped her ginger head from side to side. Froststar whispered to Ashflame a few tail-lengths away, and Firepaw cursed inwardly as she saw them exchange worried glances.

Firepaw wasn't angry at her brother.

Or anything, for that matter.

She just knew that something bad would happen soon. It was just a feeling. And she was angry because she knew that she was powerless to stop whatever was happening.

She turned and darted away, out of camp, into the forest.

Ignoring her brother's furious yowl of, "Hey, come back! I'm no cheat!"

What did he know.

He probably didn't have a sense of foreboding.

Fuming, she settled down in an empty clearing. She didn't bother to sheathe her claws. Her ginger fur was still fluffed up, and her hackles were still raised as she stared blankly at her surroundings.

Pawsteps sounded behind her, and, lifting her head challengingly, she saw that it was Ashflame and Froststar. Her green eyes still blazed as she glared at them. Froststar padded closer. "Firepaw, there's something bothering you, and a blind rabbit could see that. But it wasn't fair of you to call Stormpaw a cheat."

"How can you say that?" Firepaw demanded. "He tricked me into being distracted!"

"Just calm down, and then, when you feel better, you can go and apologize to-" Ashflame began.

Firepaw cut him off. "I'll _never_ apologize to Stormpaw!" she hissed. "Why don't you two just... leave me alone!" She turned and raced away, into the deeper part of the forest. She was pleased when her parents didn't follow. Firepaw sank her claws into the bark of the Sky Oak, then pulled herself up. _Anything to distract myself._ She leaped from branch to branch, then looked down, perched on one of the highest branches.

She could even see to RiverClan territory, across the lake. It was a view of all the clans. Fascinating.

"She can really climb, can't she?" The voice nearly made Firepaw fall out of the tree in shock. The voice belonged to Ashflame.

"Yes, she can." That was Froststar.

No, it couldn't be.

She'd left them all far behind her.

But still, as she looked down, there stood her mother and father. Firepaw jumped from branch to branch, climbing down the great oak tree, dropping to her paws tail-lengths from Froststar and Ashflame.

"I thought I told you to leave me alone?" Without waiting for a reply, she turned and stalked away.

She nearly barreled straight into Ashflame.

"Firepaw, I'm your father, and I know what's best for you." Ashflame's voice was firm. "Tell us about it."

"There's nothing wrong!" Firepaw practically yowled.

Froststar flicked her tail. "Why did you yowl at Stormpaw like that? He's your brother, and he was only playing. It wasn't even a real fight."

"These fights with your littermates, they're only meant to make you grow stronger," Ashflame mewed.

Firepaw shrugged. "Maybe I shouldn't have called him a cheat, then. But Brightwing says that my emotions are really obvious and easy to read. Then how come Stormpaw couldn't tell I was in a bad mood?"

"Look, Firepaw, I agree that Stormpaw also is a little bit to blame. But how about you? You can't just call your littermate a cheat and walk away as though nothing happened!" Froststar mewed, running her tail over her back.

And then, a yowl, or more like a dying screech, rang through the air, leaving Firepaw to watch as her parents turned away, bounding through the forest in search of the victim.


	35. Part 2 - Chapter 6

Firepaw padded into camp, alone. Her parents had gone in search of whoever had let out the yowl, leaving her to return to camp for the night. As she padded by Stormpaw, who glared at her as though she was a total stranger, something twinged in her heart.

"Stormpaw?"

"No. Leave me alone."

Firepaw nudged her brother. Hard. Taken by surprise, he stumbled to the ground. "Come with me."

"I already told you," Stormpaw snapped. "No."

"Too bad." Firepaw fastened her teeth in his tail and pulled him away from Darkpaw, who padded into the apprentices' den. She didn't need to pull too hard, for Stormpaw, sighing, followed anyway. The two of them padded to the area behind the nursery. "Look, I'm sorry I called you a cheat," she mewed. "I've just got a lot on my mind, that's all."

Stormpaw turned away. "Well..." He looked uncomfortable. "That's fine." He brushed his pelt against hers in affection. "Is Brightwing training you hard?"

"Er... yeah."

That was a decent excuse.

oO0Oo

"No!"

Firepaw pricked her ears as she heard the wail, then padded into the clearing. Froststar and Ashflame dragged in the limp body of Sorrelflight, who, she realized, had recently moved to the nursery.

The cry belonged to Brightwing, who had been staring at her former apprentice's limp form.

Fur rustled beside Firepaw, and she turned to see Scorchclaw. When he saw her staring, he turned his head away. _He's grieving, too,_ she thought. The loss would be heavy on the clan.

"Who killed her?" Blueshadow asked, padding out of the nursery. Two kits, who had been born just days before, bounced out behind her. Firepaw recognized them as Shadekit and Willowkit, a black she-cat and silver-gray she-cat, respectively.

"That's what I'd like to know," Scorchclaw growled.

Froststar flicked her tail for silence. Firepaw looked up expectantly at her white mother. "I don't know who killed her," the leader announced gravely. "We found her body in the clearing that holds the Sky Oak, and if you look closely, you can tell she was murdered. Look at the gash in her throat."

"But this is terrible!" Grayleaf mewed, stepping forward.

"It is," Brightwing agreed.

"Her body was warm, and we couldn't quite pick up the scent of her murderer," Ashflame reported.

"But," Froststar growled, unsheathing her claws, "since no other scent was detected, the murderer is a ThunderClan cat." She had barely finished speaking before yowls broke out thorugh the listening clan, yowls of anger, outrage, confusion, and panic. And chaos.

Firepaw joined in.

She never had thought of any of her clanmates as a murderer before.

But if Froststar said so, she'd believe it. And besides, yowls of agreement came from a few cats who padded closer to sniff the body.

She'd thought the evil was gone when Nightstar was destroyed.

But maybe, just maybe, she had been wrong.

oO0Oo

"ThunderClan, follow me!" Froststar yowled, her voice nearly lost in the wind. Though the breeze temporarily blinded her, Firepaw could make out that the white she-cat was creeping onto a fallen tree, that created a bridge to an island across the lake.

 _The island._

Firepaw, Stormpaw, Darkpaw, and Heatherpaw had all been amongst the chosen cats to go to the gathering tonight. It would be their first, except for Heatherpaw, who had been to a gathering before, and Firepaw was simply thrilled.

She had been hurling questions at Heatherpaw ever since they had started walking to the island, but it seemed that she had run out of queries now.

Firepaw padded onto the fallen tree. The bark was soft but slippery, so she dug her claws in to stay on balance. Darkpaw padded ahead of her, her pale fur shining in the moonlight, and her black tail and paws blended in with the night.

In her excitement, Firepaw had nearly forgotten about Sorrelflight.

Darkpaw slipped ahead of her, and Firepaw took her scruff in her teeth to steady her. Still, the back end of her body landed in the lake, and she thrashed about as Firepaw, helped by Heatherpaw, hauled her back onto balance. "Thanks."

"You proved Blossomshade right!" Heatherpaw mewed with false anger. "She said that one of the apprentices would fall into the lake today, and if no cat did, she would eat her tail!

Stormpaw pretended to spit crossly. "Now we don't get to see her eat her tail!"

Purring in amusement, Firepaw leaned away as Darkpaw shook out her fur, slapped Stormpaw with her wet tail, then padded ahead. Firepaw jumped onto the island. It was more like a large clearing, surrounded by trees. And one tree stood in the center of the clearing, the Great Oak. This, clearly, was where the leaders would gather. Sure enough, Froststar dipped her head to the ShadowClan leader, Birchstar, and the RiverClan leader, Jaystar.

Heartbeats after she had taken her place in the Great Oak, WindClan poured into the clearing. A red-brown tom leaped onto an oak branch with agility. Firepaw realized that this must be Swiftstar, the WindClan leader.

"Let the gathering begin!" Froststar yowled. She dipped her head. "Swiftstar, would you like to go first?"

"Thank you." The large tom flicked his tail as he spoke. _I wouldn't want to meet him in battle. He looks like a strong cat._ "WindClan is well. Breezefang has given birth to three healthy kits, Brightkit, Oakkit, and Windkit." He paused, and the gathering grew alive with murmurs of congratulations. "StarClan have blessed WindClan with rich prey."

Froststar padded forward. "Blueshadow has given birth to Shadekit and Willowkit." She paused, and her eyes clouded a little, with sadness. "I regret to announce that Sorrelflight was ki- she has gone to join StarClan."

Birchstar's eyes gleamed. "Sorrelflight was a young cat, and she will be a loss for all the clans. How did she die?"

Froststar hesitated. "Well..." Her voice rose to an authoritative yowl. "That is ThunderClan's business and no one else's!" Birchstar dipped his head, then stepped forward on the branch.

"ShadowClan is well. There is no news to report this moon."

Firepaw watched, awed, as he dipped his head to Jaystar, who bent her neck elegantly as she began to speak. "RiverClan is doing wonderfully. Unfortunately, Mallowtail has gone to join the elders. We shall miss him as a deputy." The tawny-colored tom dipped his head, and another cat padded forward. "Runningstorm is our new deputy. That is all."

"Then the gathering is over," Froststar mewed. "ThunderClan wishes you another moon of peace." So saying, she sprang down, and the other leaders followed quickly. Froststar flicked her tail, her white fur gleaming in the darkness. "ThunderClan! To me!"

oO0Oo

Firepaw padded after her mentor, shuddering. She simply couldn't stop being nervous ever since Sorrelflight had been murdered. Who could have killed Sorrelflight so easily? The young queen was a strong cat, but perhaps she had been weakened ever since she had moved to the nursery.

"Are you all right?" Brightwing asked.

"Fine," Firepaw replied. It had been two moons since her first gathering, and she had successfully passed her first assessment. "It's just that... I can't stop thinking about Sorrelflight."

Brightwing rested her tail on her back. "Don't worry; we'll find the murderer." Her voice dropped. "I hope."


	36. Part 2 - Chapter 7

Firepaw padded into camp, a plump squirrel in her jaws. Brightwing padded through the thorn tunnel after her, then nodded approvingly as she placed it on the fresh-kill pile. Froststar padded over, her eyes dark. "Firepaw, Brightwing."

"What is it?" Brightwing asked.

"There's been another murder. Look, this time it was Willowkit. If this goes on any longer, we won't have a clan anymore."

Firepaw gasped in horror, and Brightwing dug unsheathed claws into the ground.

"And Firepaw, I want to see you in my den." Firepaw opened her jaws to protest, but her mother cut her off abruptly, and her blue eyes were horrified. "Now. Come on." Firepaw shot a glance at the worried Brightwing before padding after the white leader into her den.

"What is it?"

"Firepaw, did you kill Willowkit?"

"What? No!" Firepaw's heart twinged at the fact that her mother could think that she had killed an innocent kit. "I would never do that, honestly."

Froststar looked hesitant. "Then how come all you brought back was the squirrel?"

Firepaw sighed in relief. "No, I buried the rest behind a bush. Really, do you think I could do such a thing?"

Froststar purred. "I didn't want to believe it."

oO0Oo

Firepaw padded to Willowkit's limp pale gray body, staring sadly down at it. She felt that she could have stopped this young kit's death. Even if she didn't know Willowkit well enough, her death meant a lot to the clan. Now, they knew that both Willowkit's and Blossomshade's deaths weren't accidents; they were _murders._

Four cats were already there. Blueshadow and Shadekit, obviously, stood grieving over the dead she-kit. They were her mother and sister, respectively, and both looked upset. Firepaw's heart sank to her paws as she saw Froststar pad out of her den to stare at Willowkit.

Heartbeats later, Froststar leaped onto the Highledge. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Highledge for a clan meeting!"

"Why?" Heatherpaw whispered to Firepaw, and she shrugged, but she padded to the Highledge anyway.

"I realize that ThunderClan is in dire need of more warriors," Froststar mewed. "I know that my kits have not yet completed their warrior training, but I wish for their mentors to speed it up. I want their final assessment to be in the next two moons."

 _Two moons!_ Firepaw's heart soared, and she watched eagerly as Brightwing nodded.

"It shall be done."

oO0Oo

Firepaw hissed in frustration, her sheathed claws striking nothing. "Mouse-dung!"

Brightwing cuffed her around her ear. "Come on, Firepaw. I know you can do better than that! If you want to be a warrior soon, you'll have to show it!"

"I'm trying!" Firepaw snapped.

"Well, clearly, it's not enough," Brightwing growled. Then, she sniffed the air, and her eyes widened in alarm. Firepaw sniffed the air as well, and met her mentor's gaze with horror.

"Brightwing! What are WindClan doing on our territory?"

Brightwing growled, lashing her tail.

"Do you mean, what are you doing on _our_ territory?" an insolent growl returned smoothly, and Firepaw saw at least five WindClan warriors pad out of a bush. Brightwing got into a defensive stance, and turned her head slightly to mew to Firepaw.

"Go get help. Now."

Firepaw nodded, turning to dash away, through the trees, but a weight landed on her from behind, and she yowled in pain. Rolling over, she swiped her unsheathed claws at the tom's face, and he drew back, but not before her claws raked over his eyes. Firepaw turned and ran.

She ran until she couldn't breathe, and she burst into the camp.

"Firepaw? What's wrong?" Froststar padded over to greet her.

Firepaw's mew came out in short gasps. "WindClan... attacking... outnumbered..."

Froststar's eyes widened. "Darkpaw, Stonetail, Stormpaw, Whitefoot, Sandshade, Scorchclaw. Go and fend off this attack!"

"I'll go, too," Firepaw volunteered, having caught her breath.

Froststar shook her head. "No, you're exhausted-"

"I can fight," Firepaw interrupted firmly, then turned and darted out of the thorn tunnel, following the battle patrol. She sprang down the slope with a loud caterwaul, ramming her paws into a WindClan she-cat's chest. Brightwing's eyes glowed with praise, and Firepaw kicked out, raking her hind legs across the cat's underbelly.

She broke away from Firepaw, eyes wide. Firepaw turned and sprang onto the cat that was holding Darkpaw down. The tom yowled in surprise, rolling, and Firepaw jumped off, while Darkpaw shot her a grateful look and darted away.

"WindClan! Retreat!" The yowl was wonderful for Firepaw's exhausted ears to hear.

oO0Oo

"Brightwing, do you really think I'm ready?" Firepaw persisted, exchanging an eager glance with Darkpaw and Stormpaw.

Brightwing purred. "You have always been."

Today was their second assessment, hopefully their last, if they succeeded. They had to bring back as much prey as they could before sundown. Firepaw crouched, her muscles pumping in eagerness, as Brightwing dipped her head.

"Go."

Firepaw dropped into a crouch, her jaws open to taste the air. Suddenly, she flinched back, then sniffed the air again before turning back to Brightwing. "Do you smell that?"

Brightwing narrowed her eyes. "You're not supposed to talk to me."

"No, but, just smell the air!"

Brightwing sighed, opening her jaws, and her eyes widened in terror. She whipped her head back around to face Firepaw, and her tail lashed once. "Yes, I do. It's the smell of... the smell of..." She trailed off, and Firepaw swallowed. Was she all right? "... of death."

 _What's wrong with her?_ Firepaw wondered, but she shrugged the thought off. "Darkpaw! Stormpaw! Come back! Now!" Brightwing ordered, her mew coming out as a yowl. Heartbeats later, Darkpaw and Stormpaw burst through the trees, and Firepaw winced as their claws ripped at the ground.

"What happened?" Darkpaw demanded.

"There's been another murder," Brightwing announced in a growl, sniffing the air. "Let's get back to camp."

Firepaw turned and bounded away through the trees. _Oh, StarClan!_ She skidded through the thorn tunnel, her breath coming in gasps, and Darkpaw and Stormpaw skidded to a halt beside her. Brightwing's tail lashed again, and her eyes were wide with fear. Firepaw flinched, blinking rapidly to clear the image of the limp, lifeless body of the cat in front of her.


	37. Part 2 - Chapter 8

Firepaw reeled back, almost into Brightwing, and the scent of death in the air seemed to grow at least twice as strong. Tears filled her eyes, and she realized that her claws were tearing furiously at the grass. _Who did this? Why?_ She almost wailed out loud, pain stabbing into her heart. She dug her paws into the soft ground to steady herself, and she closed her eyes briefly.

 _Please, let this be a dream. StarClan, please._

Firepaw opened her eyes again, but the lifeless form of a she-cat still lay in the center of the clearing.

Froststar padded forward to greet them, sadness almost overwhelming her gaze, but when she spoke, her voice was cold and eerily calm. "So, you've seen what has happened." She paused, then leaned toward her deputy. "Why, Brightwing? Why does our clan have to be ridden by some murderer?" She raised her voice so that ShadowClan could hear her yowl. "Whoever you are, show yourself!"

Brightwing laid a tail on her shoulder. Firepaw had heard that earlier, the two had never really liked each other, but now, they were closer than ever.

 _No._ Firepaw couldn't stand it. She turned away from the sight of the body in the clearing, closing her eyes briefly. When she opened them again, Froststar was on the Highledge, yowling out. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a clan meeting!" _She didn't use the right words,_ Firepaw realized, a little startled. She shook her head. _She's probably just upset._

Cats poured out of their dens, standing at the base of the Highledge, as Froststar addressed her clan. She didn't look like a leader. She was worn down with sadness and exhaustion, and her fur was ragged, her eyes dull. "There's been another murder," she announced.

"Who is it?" a voice asked, and Firepaw realized that it was Scorchclaw.

Froststar flicked her tail, her voice taut with pain. "See for yourself."

 _It just wasn't fair,_ Firepaw thought. She then whispered those exact words to Stormpaw, who twitched an ear, listening. "It just wasn't fair. Whoever it is picks on the weaker cats. First a queen, then a kit, and now, her! This isn't fair!"

Froststar was speaking again. "As you know, because of this, Firepaw, Darkpaw, and Stormpaw didn't get to perform their warrior assessments. I have decided that instead of giving them a formal assessment, they all just have to hunt three pieces of fresh-kill as quickly as they can, then mock battle against each other."

Firepaw breathed out.

Darkpaw purred.

Stormpaw flicked his tail nonchalantly, though Firepaw saw anticipation shining in his eyes.

"Go now."

oO0Oo

Firepaw let out a low growl as she landed where the thrush should have been heartbeats ago. The third catch was always the hardest, she reflected bitterly, momentarily glancing towards the area she had buried her other two pieces.

Or, she was just upset. It wasn't everyday a cat got murdered, but maybe that would change now. _I am going to find the murderer,_ Firepaw vowed silently, fury pulsing through her. And she would do her best, at least. Anything for the clan.

Firepaw dropped into a crouch again, her eyes focused on a small squirrel that was turned away from her. Stifling her growl, she leaped, biting down harder than she needed to on its spine.

"Well done!" a voice cried out, almost instantly. Firepaw whipped around hackles raised, then narrowed her eyes, seeing an unfamiliar she-cat staring at her. "Nice catch. I don't like squirrels much, but I prefer voles, and..." She trailed on, and Firepaw rolled her eyes. Obviously, she had no idea of the danger she would be in is she was caught on ThunderClan territory. "I don't live near here, by the way. I live across the gorge, but I was just exploring-"

"The _gorge?"_ Firepaw echoed.

"Yeah, the gorge." She sounded unimpressed. "Do you live around here?"

Firepaw snorted. "Yeah, you're in my territory. I'll have to chase you off if you don't leave now." She let out a growl, unsheathing her claws, and the she-cat, a young blue-gray tabby, turned and darted away. Firepaw rolled her eyes, sheathing her claws again as the tip of the tabby's tail vanished.

Heartbeats later, her head poked around again. "I'm Blue, by the way!"

And she disappeared.

oO0Oo

"I, Froststar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down at these three apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Darkpaw, Stormpaw, Firepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your life?"

Stormpaw stepped forward. "I do."

Darkpaw dipped her head. "I do."

Firepaw puffed out her chest proudly, her fiery fur flat. "I do."

"Echoshine, is Stormpaw ready?"

The pale tortoiseshell she-cat padded forward to lick Stormpaw's head affectionately. "He is."

"And Sandshade, is Darkpaw?"

Sandshade stepped forward to speak. "She will be a great warrior."

"Brightwing? How about Firepaw?"

Firepaw drew in a breath, then relaxed as Brightwing shot her an encouraging glance. "Firepaw will be a warrior the clan can be proud of."

Froststar dipped her head. "Darkpaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Darkmoon. StarClan honors your determination and courage, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." She paused before speaking again. "Stormpaw, from this moment onward you will be known as Stormheart. StarClan honors your wisdom and bravery, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Firepaw waited patiently, but eagerly. "Firepaw, from this moment onward, you will be known as Firestorm. StarClan honors your loyalty and courage, and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

After her littermates, Firestorm padded forward, licking Froststar's white shoulder respectfully, and she, in turn, lay her muzzle on Firestorm's head.

Firestorm puffed out her chest. "Darkmoon! Stormheart! Firestorm!"

Firestorm pricked her ears as the cheering died away at last, and the elders had been preparing the body for burial. Firestorm touched her nose to the cold fur one last time before the elders dragged the limp form away. Firestorm felt tears spring to her eyes once more.

This would be the last time she could see that light brown tabby pelt.

It was Heatherpaw.


	38. Part 2 - Chapter 9

Firestorm let out a growl, lashing her tail furiously as she joined her clanmates in mourning for the most recently killed cat. It just wasn't fair, she realized. It had been a moon since the death of Heatherpaw, and now came the next death.

A muscular gray tomcat lay in the center of the clearing, his muscles still powerful but motionless, his eyes blank.

Ashflame.

Her own father.

Froststar padded toward her, her white fur ungroomed. Obviously, she looked as though grief would spill over from inside her, as Ashflame had been her mate. But behind that grief was fear. It was a haunted, dull look, that seemed to widen her eyes and darken the blue in her gaze.

Froststar whispered something to Snowblossom, the medicine cat, who nodded, her eyes wide. But beneath the look of horror in her eyes was... a knowing, faraway look. Froststar whisked her tail to Firestorm's side. "You realize that whoever is doing this has something against me, right?" she asked, wincing slightly as she spoke. "First Heatherpaw, now Ashflame."

Darkmoon, from beside Firestorm, pricked her ears. "That makes sense. But I thought Nightstar was dead!"

"He is, mouse-brain," Stormheart retorted. "So someone wants to hurt you, Froststar. But why, and who?"

"Do you know of anyone who hates you, Froststar?" Firestorm asked, addressing the white she-cat in such a tone that showed Froststar was her leader, rather than her mother.

Froststar shook her head, looking defeated. "No."

"Well, that could be the only way," Firestorm mewed, turning away, burying her nose into Ashflame's fur.

oO0Oo

The leaves were Ashflame had been found earlier that day, they carried an unusual scent. Firestorm leaned in as close as she could, her nose almost touching the dried leaves as she sniffed, long and hard. Then, she pricked her ears. _I know that scent!_ Indeed, she did. But she couldn't put a name to the scent, so she had to follow it. To her surprise, it led in the opposite direction of the ThunderClan camp.

Firestorm darted through the trees, her paws skimming across the soft forest ground. Her green eyes were wide with excitement as she sprinted towards the border with the Twolegplace, then skidded to a halt.

 _I can't go any further! It could be a Twolegplace cat, for all I know!_ Drawing in a deep breath, she swallowed. _Should I go?_

A small voice in her head spoke for a reply. _It could be the clan's only chance. You'd serve your clan with your life, wouldn't you?_

 _Of course I would!_ Firestorm thought indignantly. _But-_

 _You're wondering what your clan would do without you,_ another voice said to her, interrupting. _Remember, if you keep up the warrior code forever, you will be a great and honored warrior. Is it really the right thing to go across, to the Twolegplace?_

The first voice countered. _Yes! ThunderClan needs to find the murderer!_

That did it.

Firestar bunched her muscles. _I'm going._

She padded after the scent, faintly locating it after the border. But how did she know this scent, if it led to the Twolegplace? Either this cat was from the Twolegplace, and she had seen it before... her mind whirled as she racked it desperately for an answer.

Then, it hit her.

The cat she had seen, the small blue-gray tabby she had seen in the forest. In the image of her, still locked safely in Firestorm's mind, her clear blue eyes blinked innocently, and Firestorm flinched. Somehow, she didn't think the young she-cat would hurt any ThunderClan warrior, forget kill them.

Which only left one possible reason.

There was a traitor in ThunderClan, who had fled to the Twolegplace to hide temporarily, for the clan to lose its scent, and then the traitor would return. That didn't really help Firestorm. There were so many patrols, it wasn't easy to remember which cats left camp.

 _StarClan, help me._

Firestorm bounded after the scent trail, her green eyes narrowed in concentration as well as determination. She vowed to herself, she would not go back to camp without the name of the killer on her tongue.

And indeed she wouldn't.

Then, the scent grew stronger. Ashflame's words to her when she was a kit suddenly rang in her head. _"You must take after your mother, Firekit. She was the fastest cat there ever was!"_

Firestorm looked up, whipping her tail with startling speed, as she saw a pare of dark eyes blink, and a shadow vanished soundlessly through the trees. She wasn't fast enough to recognize the eye color or fur color.

After bounding along a few more pawsteps, she froze, looking around her in dismay. _Where am I?_

The answer to her silent question lay in front of her. Less than a tail-length away from her forepaws, the ground fell away, revealing a long, deep, black gorge. Firestorm dizzily dug her claws into the ground to steady herself, then shot a quick glance down into the gorge. The blackness below her scared her, and she could see faint signs of water movement below.

Her eyes were wide with terror, and she whirled around to see where the cat had gone.

There was not even the faint rustle of a bush.

Firestorm narrowed her eyes, then turned back, glancing at the foreign territory across the gorge, a misty, flat, grassy area that seemed to hold trees far away, dark shadows in the distance. There was no sign of movement ahead of her. _What happened?_

The answer came as a heavy weight shoved her. With a startled yowl, she fell, and the ground disappeared from beneath her paws. Her paw snagged the ground above her, but she wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer. Firestorm's eyes filled with tears as she struggled to hold her grip.

 _I failed, StarClan. Please forgive me. ThunderClan, I tried so hard..._

A lone tear escaped the desperate boundaries of her green eyes, which were now clouded over, and she looked up, hoping to get a glimpse of her attacker, _the_ attacker, before she died. But the face was blurry and strange, through her glazed eyes. And then, the cat above turned and vanished.

"Help... please..." Firestorm moaned, her eyes stubbornly trained on the dark water below, despite how she tried to pull her gaze away.

Almost like an answer to her plea, pawsteps sounded, and she cringed. Was it her attacker, or was it a rescuer? Firestorm couldn't tell until the cat arrived, and heartbeats later, three distinctive faces: her mother's, Whitefoot's, and Sandshade's, appeared above her. Froststar reached down, her teeth reaching to clamp down on her unstable paw.

But her ginger paw slipped.

Froststar let out a yowl of shock, and her look of horror and dismay was the last thing Firestorm saw before she fell prey to the rushing water below.

And then... blackness.


	39. Part 2 - Chapter 10

Firestorm moaned. Her eyes refused to open, and she curled herself together tighter, shivering at her wet fur. _Wet fur!_ She jerked her head upward, startled. _Didn't I just die?_ Her green eyes snapped open, and she blinked at the sunhigh light. _This isn't StarClan... did I survive that?_ _But that's impossible, surely!_ She froze as she saw a very familiar blue-gray she-cat sitting calmly beside her. She didn't even blink as Firestorm jumped to her paws to face her, furiously.

"Why am I here?" she demanded, lashing her tail.

The blue-gray she-cat tipped her head to one side. "Did you really want to drown?"

So, that cat _had_ rescued her. But why? "Come to kill me, too? Were the other cats not enough to satisfy your bloodthirst?" The words were spilling out of her faster than she could think of more. But was this she-cat really the cat who had pushed her into the gorge? Then why would she save her? _She said her name was Blue, didn't she?_ Firestorm recalled.

Shock flared in the she-cat's blue eyes. "What are you meowing about? I didn't kill any cat!"

"You... didn't?" Firestorm shook out her sodden ginger fur, then flicked the last few drops of water from her tail. "You didn't push me into the gorge?"

"Why in the name of StarClan would I do that?" she snapped, narrowing her eyes.

Firestorm swallowed. "Sorry... wait. _StarClan?"_

"You're a clan cat! You should know what StarClan is!" Blue retorted.

"Yes... but how do you?"

Blue sighed, and loss shone in her clear blue eyes. "I was once a clan cat, you know. But not any more. My brother Scorchpaw drove me out of the clan in secret, because I was small. You can't believe I'm sixteen moons old, can you?"

 _Sixteen?_ Firestorm shook her head.

"Do you know Scorchpaw?" Blue asked again, staring at her meaningfully.

"Scorchclaw?" Firestorm asked. "He's a warrior. And I don't think you're talking about him. He wouldn't betray ThunderClan! He's as loyal as any other warrior, Blue!" She paused. " _This_ Scorchclaw is a dark tabby, with reddish eyes. I don't think you're talking about the right cat."

Blue froze.

"What's wrong?" Firestorm asked.

"My brother... he looked just like that."

"You're wrong," Firestorm growled, with more confidence that she felt inside her. "Scorchclaw wouldn't do that."

Blue shrugged. "Have it your way. You wanted my story, did you not? It's not over yet, though. My mother's sister, Honeyflower, had vanished from the clans a long time before, so since I couldn't return, I went away to find her, hoping she could help me. Then, I crossed to the other side of the gorge, and there is a clan there. One you've never heard of." She paused, and Firestorm widened her eyes.

" _Another_ clan?"

"Yes. But this clan is smaller. It's only the cats who have been cast out of their own clans by an evil force. Shimmer was the leader then, but she passed away around three moons ago. I was her deputy, and my name was Blueriver, but when we become leaders, we only go by our prefix."

"You're a clan _leader?"_ Firestorm couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her voice lowered. "Show me."

oO0Oo

"Firestorm, you are welcome into our clan," Blue mewed, padding into the large clearing. "Her voice lowered. Do you know a cat called Froststar? She was here a long while before now."

Firestorm nodded. "She's my mother."

Blue's eyes widened with joy. "So you are the fire." She nodded calmly, then padded away, leaving Firestorm staring after her in confusion. _The fire?_ She bounded after Blue, flicking her tail, catching up with the blue-gray leader in heartbeats.

"What do you mean?"

Blue smiled, a sad sort of smile. "You are prophesied to be the fire. But what you will do you will only find out in your own good time."

Firestorm winced. "Why did you run away the first time we met? I thought you were a warrior?"

"I am. But I didn't want to get you angry at me as soon as we met, so I went back to the clan," Blue mewed. "After all, you are the prophesied cat." Firestorm let out a low growl. _Well, what am I supposed to do about it?_

oO0Oo

"Blue, I'm grateful that you accepted me here for the afternoon, but I have to return to my clan. They... they need me." Firestorm flicked her tail as she spoke, but her green eyes betrayed her worry and concern. _I have to find the murderer! For Ashflame, and for Heatherpaw._

Blue's eyes betrayed surprise, but she nodded. "I suppose you must serve your clan."

"Thank you, Blue."

"Do you want to go back to camp with us once more, after finishing this patrol, or would you like to leave now?" Blue asked, and Firestorm hesitated. She didn't want to seem rude and hostile, but on the other hand, she had to hurry if she was to catch the murderer. Ashflame had been murdered at dawn that very morning, so she wanted to see what she could do.

"I'm sorry... I have to go now," Firestorm decided.

"Very well. We're near the gorge, as you can see, so from there, you can find your way home."

 _I can?_ Firestorm thought, eyes wide. _All I did was follow the cat's scent trail!_

 _So you can follow that scent trail right back,_ a small voice said inside her head. _After all it has only been half a day._

 _You're right,_ Firestorm replied inwardly. _But so much has happened, it feels like more._

Firestorm dipped her head to the blue-gray she-cat one last time. "Thank you for everything, Blue. I hope our paths cross again soon enough." Blue replied with a soft, rumbling purr, and touched her nose to Firestorm's in gentle affection.

"We will meet again. I'm sure." Blue smiled again, her eyes gleaming brightly. "This is my path, Firestorm, and that is yours. We cannot always force our paths in the wrong directions, because it could interfere with another cat's destiny. So farewell, Firestorm. Good luck."


	40. Part 2 - Chapter 11

_Home._ Firestorm leaped from one tree to the next, then sat, perched high above the camp, watching as her clan busied itself below her. She bunched her muscles, ready to drop down into the camp, when a long yowl stopped her. It wasn't pain; it was sadness. It wasn't exactly a yowl; it was a mix between a yowl and a moan.

"Hey," Firestorm murmured to herself, pricking her ears in confusion. "That sounds like Darkmoon!" She craned her neck so that only her eyes were visible through the leaves of the birch tree. "But why is she so sad?"

The howl came again, and this time, Firestorm could easily locate Darkmoon standing at the side of the clearing, with Stormheart and Froststar. "Oh, Darkmoon!" Stormheart pleaded. "Do stop that noise! It won't bring her back!"

"Huh?" Firestorm narrowed her eyes in interest. _Bring who back?_

"Stormheart is right, Darkmoon," Froststar mewed, her voice heavy with loss. "Firestorm... is dead."

"What in the name of StarClan?" Firestorm murmured, widening her green eyes, then lowering her head so that she would not be seen through the leaves. Her ginger fur was like fire as the sun's rays struck it, and her ears were flattened. She sighed, then nearly fell off the tree in her excitement. "Maybe, it's for the best."

Froststar's next words surprised her. "First Heatherpaw, then Ashflame, and now Firestorm! What was she doing so near the gorge, anyway?"

"I bet you the killer has something to do with this," Darkmoon growled. _The killer._ Firestorm relaxed her muscles. _Mouse-dung! And I never fonud out who it was! This is terrible! I don't remember who pushed me over the gorge!_

Firestorm turned away, then looked down, into the distance. No cat was in her vicinity, so she sprang to the next tree, then to the next, and the next, hiding herself amongst the leaves as a familiar black tom padded beneath her, sniffing the air. Firestorm pricked her ears. She thought she could pick up a familiar scent on Scorchclaw's paws, but she didn't know what. It was just... _too_ familiar.

"Funny," Scorchclaw muttered to himself, and Firestorm had to prick her ears to catch his next words. "The air smells of Firestorm. But I thought she was dead." Firestorm flattened her ears, ducking into the leaves, as Scorchclaw looked up, then padded away.

 _That's odd,_ Firestorm thought. _There's no way he could have heard the news so fast... unless..._

Unless Scorchclaw was the murderer.

This was madness. Firestorm rolled in the puddle of mud over and over, to hide her scent and her fur. How could Scorchclaw be the murderer? He didn't have anything against her! But there always was a possibility that Scorchclaw had heard the news from a passing patrol or something. It just didn't make sense for Scorchclaw, whom every cat admired for his skills, to be the killer.

So, it wasn't Scorchclaw.

But then who was it?

Firestorm sighed. _I guess I just have to wait and see who the murderer is._

oO0Oo

Firestorm pricked her ears. It was the darkest hour of the moonless, starless night, and while ThunderClan was asleep, she was wide awake. And, she thought, so would the killer be. Dropping into the center of camp, she crept into the warriors' den.

There was one cat missing, and that was Scorchclaw.

But why would he kill a cat? Perhaps he was just taking a midnight walk. _Yeah, and hedgehogs fly._ Though Firestorm didn't want to believe it, she _had_ to, and now, all she needed was proof, and then, she would be set. Firestorm had been in hiding for over a moon now, and she had gotten used to the fact that she would have to survive with muddy fur, if she wanted to stay hidden.

Firestorm bounded from branch to branch as she heard a yowl. And on the ground, in the center of a clearing, lay Blueshadow.

 _Why her?_ Firestorm resisted the urge to snap the killer's throat then and there.

But she already knew who the killer was.

Because he was standing right there, staring down over the body of the dead queen. _Poor Blueshadow._ The blue-gray she-cat had been alive long before even her mother was born, and she never thought she would see the day she died. _Poor Shadekit._ Her dark gray she-kit would have to survive for part of a moon longer without a mother.

Firestorm ducked into the leaves as the dark-furred tabby tom turned, gazing around to see if anyone was watching him. He was barely a shadow in the midst of the dark night. Still, Firestorm would recognize those blood-red eyes anywhere.

Scorchclaw.

And the killer turned and vanished.

oO0Oo

How could this even be possible?

Scorchclaw had been a cat Firestorm had once respected for being a great fighter, and yet, he was a murderer. Firestorm recalled the days he would teach them how to hunt and fight in simple moves, when she and her littermates were only kits. _And he killed Heatherpaw._

 _And Ashflame._

 _And Sorrelflight._

 _And Willowkit._

 _And Blueshadow._

 _And... me._

Firestorm had to remain a StarClan cat if she was to find out more. Otherwise, if Scorchclaw learned she wasn't dead, she would feel his claws at her throat the next heartbeat. Firestorm shuddered at the thought of those thorn-sharp claws and teeth tearing through her ginger fur.

So, she was nothing but a living spirit.


	41. Part 2 - Chapter 12

Firestorm bounded across ThunderClan territory, then paused, scaling her way up a large oak. She placed her head to one side, her green eyes blinking thoughtfully as she let out a soft sigh. "Now that I know, what am I going to do now, StarClan?" Firestorm lifted her head to the starry sky as she spoke.

The air remained cold and silent, and Firestorm shook her head. Something inside her heart told her that she shouldn't attack, not yet. But she couldn't wait for Scorchclaw to kill more cats, could she? Firestorm lowered her gaze. It had been over two moons since Blueshadow had died at Scorchclaw's bleeding paws, but to Firestorm, it had definitely fel a lot longer than that. She had been in hiding the entire time, not doing _anything_ about Scorchclaw.

She felt useless, utterly useless.

Firestorm sighed again, then padded across the border with ease. It was a regular thing she did, so it didn't give her the feeling of foreboding that it once had. _I need help._ Firestorm's fur bristled as the icy wind whipped around it.

 _And I know exactly where to find it._

Firestorm raced across the open territory, feeling somewhat renewed. She hadn't eaten for days on end, but she didn't care. It was leaf-bare, and she couldn't rob ThunderClan of its prey.

She wasn't really a ThunderClan cat anymore.

A tom's shriek pierced the air.

Firestorm whipped around, ears pricked as her head turned from side to side. She knew that sound. It was Tigerflame, a warrior who was slightly older than her, whom she had known ever since she was a kit.

She hadn't really thought twice about him for a while, now, but she wouldn't let any cat die if she had a choice. _Scorchclaw has struck._

The thought filled her mind as she turned back, heading towards ThunderClan territory. She knew that she might be too late, if it indeed _was_ Scorchclaw, but there was no other choice. Firestorm's ears fell back as she ran, carrying her mother's speed with her.

She had disguised her scent earlier on, but she forgot to cover her fur in mud.

Firestorm plunged down the slope to see Tigerflame locked in battle - not with Scorchclaw, but rather with a dreaded russet-furred creature that towered over the young warrior. _A fox!_ Firestorm stared momentarily at her paws.

The ginger gleamed. She didn't have much time, did she? Firestorm had a choice: to keep her identity hidden, or to save Tigerflame.

 _He can't fight that alone._

Something inside her snapped as Firestorm heard another panicked screech. Firestorm jumped to her paws, hurtling down the slope. Her fiery ginger form slammed into the fox, knocking it off balance as its head whipped around in surprise, meeting her gaze with its small, dark eyes.

Firestorm forced herself to remain silent. If she spoke, she would give herself away. Even now, there was a slight chance that Tigerflame didn't recognize her, and Firestorm was willing to take that chance. Her paws slashed at the fox's belly. Firestorm hadn't lost any of her warrior strength, and the fox fell to its paws, eyes blazing.

Tigerflame was on his paws beside her, swiping and hissing. "Thanks," he whispered softly. But his eyes showed no signs of recognition.

Firestorm bent her head elegantly to him, then kicked out with her hind legs, catching the fox's foreleg with her claws. The red-brown creature let out a howl as Tigerflame's claws met its eyes, and it turned and hobbled away through the trees.

"Who are you?" Tigerflame's voice startled Firestorm out of her thoughts. Firestorm lifted a paw and pointed upwards. _Cloud?_ She decided to hold that name, at least for now. "Sun?" Firestorm shook her head, lifting her paw towards the pale gray shapes that scuttled across the sky. "Air? Cloud?"

At this point, Firestorm dipped her head earnestly.

"Why aren't you speaking, Cloud?" Tigerflame asked, his voice laced with suspicion. _Because it would give me away!_ Firestorm, or rather, Cloud, placed her paw over her jaws, then shook her head. She opened her jaws, her mouth forming words, but she held back the sound.

Tigerflame nodded. "You remind me of a cat I used to know."

 _That's me._ Firestorm pricked her ears and nodded thoughtfully.

"I... I loved her, but I don't think she realized it. But she died." Firestorm swallowed a gasp. _What? This couldn't be happening!_ But the shock was somehow replaced by an eerie calmness, almost peaceful within her. A hollow feeling settled in her belly.

She realized why she had saved Tigerflame.

Maybe, there was a chance that she loved him, too?

oO0Oo

Firestorm bounded across the grass, her heart slowing. She had left ThunderClan territory the previous night, and now, she was headed where she had originally begun. She had needed help. And she knew where to look for it.

But she couldn't get the image of the way Tigerflame's eyes had glowed when he had spoken about her. He really meant it, and Firestorm could feel a warmth in her heart.

But she couldn't love Tigerflame, could she?

She was the only one who knew about Scorchclaw's treachery, so she was the only one who could destroy him.

Firestorm recalled the day she had "died", the night she had returned to camp as a spirit. There had been a distictive dark brown tabby shape crouched in the center of the clearing, with tear-filled eyes, producing low sobs.

That, she realized, had been Tigerflame.

Firestorm closed her eyes for a heartbeat. She had always regarded Tigerflame as a friend in her heart, but only now, by seeing the love for her in Tigerflame's eyes, did she realize the truth.

She had fallen in love.

And now, feeling as though her heart had been released from an intolerable pressure, Firestorm jumped gracefully to her paws.

She ran in the direction of help.

Back to the Clan of the Broken. Blue would be able to help.


	42. Part 2 - Chapter 13

"Interesting..." Blue was speaking half to herself. "You say you know who is killing these cats, correct?"

Firestorm nodded desperately. She had reached her Clan of the Broken, and now, she was waiting for Blue's reply. The blue-gray she-cat's fur had grown more silver since the last time she had seen her, and her eyes had grown more blue. But still, she was a small cat.

"Wait, Firestorm. Your time will come, and you will feel it in your heart when it is right to attack, and make this known." Blue rolled her shoulders, then let out an encouraging purr as she faced Firestorm again. "Is that all you wanted to ask?"

Firestorm shook her head. "You see... I'm the only one who knows about Scorch- well, this killer- so I am the only one who can stop him, right?"

"Right."

"But there's a cat from my clan - Tigerflame - who I saw the other day. I helped him fend off a fox, and when he asked, I communicated to him that I was a mute she-cat named Cloud." Firestorm's gaze fell onto her paws as she spoke. "But how can I fulfill this destiny if Tigerflame is there!" Her voice dropped to a whisper, and as she spoke, she realized the truth in her voice. "I... I love him."

But Blue was far from worried. An amused expression crept across her face. "Oh, Firestorm." She pressed against the ginger she-cat, throwing her tail over her back. "Destiny is a tricky thing. It is laid out for you, but you can choose to follow it or create your own path. You can even choose to mold it in any way you wish."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," Blue mewed, "that you can choose. You can follow your heart towards Tigerflame, and you can follow your destiny at the same time."

"I can?"

"You can, Firestorm." Blue let out a soft purr, then pulled away from Firestorm to meet her gaze with a determined stare. "Now, you know what is right, Firestorm. Go! Go and follow the path which was laid out for you."

oO0Oo

Firestorm was dreaming, her paws pressed into her belly, her tail curled around her ginger body as her chest rose and fell, from where she lay, in the empty clearing, not far from the edge of ThunderClan. Her paw twitched.

She was in a dark clearing, blinking rapidly to adjust to the darkness. Her pelt shone like fire in the night, and her tail twitched uncomfortably. "Where am I?" she wondered aloud, her voice carrying a strange echo.

"You are where you are." A cold, calm voice spoke, and a completely black tom with a scarred chest stepped in front of her. With a yowl of shock, Firestorm leaped back, but her paw caught on a root and she slipped, tumbling onto the cold forest ground.

The black tom grinned, flashing sharp fangs. "Am I really that frightening?"

"Who are you?" Firestorm jumped to her paws, meeting the black tom's green gaze with her own, trying to keep the tremor out of her voice.

The black tom nodded his greeting. "My name is Nightclaw, and I have come to tell you to stop."

"Stop... what?"

"You are tracking Scorchclaw down, and you think that he is nothing but a brutal murderer." Nightclaw dipped his head calmly, though there was something unreadable in his eyes. Firestorm flinched. This wasn't far from the truth. "You are wrong. Scorchclaw did kill those cats, but he never had a choice. He was being ordered by another cat. One who was far more powerful. And he obeyed reluctantly."

Firestorm took a pace back. "No."

"It's your choice, Firestorm." Nightclaw shrugged his massive shoulders. "You can attack Scorchclaw, or you can find out the root of the problem." _This cat is far more than he seems to be..._

oO0Oo

Firestorm padded through the trees, pausing as she scaled to the highest branch of an oak that stood at the edge of camp. It was the perfect lookout, where she could see the entire camp. Froststar sat in the center of the clearing, her head low. She lifted it as Brightwing passed her.

"Brightwing! Could you go hunting?"

"Just me?" Brightwing sounded surprised.

"Yes. Most of the other warriors are on patrol, and we need a strong guard in case of invasion." Froststar licked a paw and swiped it across her whiskers. "Go now. And be back soon. With that murderer around, I can't risk any cat out too long."

Fear wormed its way into Firestorm's belly, and she had to dig her claws into the bark to stop herself from falling off. This could not be good, for Brightwing.

"Very well." Brightwing turned and padded through the entrance of the camp. Firestorm narrowed her eyes into a glare as she spotted to blood-red eyes from behind a bush, and two dark ears pricked, listening.

Firestorm kept her tail low. _I can't follow her through the trees silently, because I'll be too late... but do I have any other choice?_ Her eyes gleaming with anticipation, Firestorm bounded through the trees after her former mentor.

Time seemed to slow down, become _too_ slow for her, as she bounded through the trees. But Brightwing had vanished from her sight.

Firestorm pricked her ears as she heard a yowl, then raced faster, ignoring the fact the the branches cruched beneath her paws.

 _I'm too late._ The very thought made her flatten her ears and shake out her fur, as if shaking off the idea.

She sprang to the next branch, so that she was perfectly balanced above a clearing. As she had suspected, there were two cats in the clearing. Brightwing and Scorchclaw. But only one was alive.

Unfortunately, it was Scorchclaw.

But she had known the outcome of a fight between the two. Brightwing was older, and she didn't have the fighting strength she had moons ago. But Scorchclaw... he was stronger and more skilled. _But he had no choice,_ Nightclaw mewed, into her head.

But Brightwing's death wasn't the worst part. Scorchclaw's head had lifted, and his eyes met hers.

He had seen her, and he knew she was alive.


End file.
